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Researchers situated in South Korea have engineered a synthetic muscle proficient in hoisting roughly 4,000 times its intrinsic weight. They suggest its potential utilization in upcoming humanoid robots.
A notable advance in the muscle’s architecture is its aptitude to exhibit either flexibility or rigidity as required, a pioneering feat within this domain of investigation. The scientists detailed their discoveries in a report released on Sept. 7 in the publication Advanced Functional Materials.
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Man-made muscles are frequently constrained by a deficiency in either flexibility or tautness; they must be pliable while additionally delivering sufficient energy yield, or their performance intensities become restricted. Nevertheless, adaptable synthetic muscles are viewed as groundbreaking due to their minimized weight, mechanical adjustability, and proficiency in multidirectional activation (motion).
When the investigators mention “performance intensity,” they are alluding to the quantum of energy per unit volume that the muscle can supply. Attaining elevated values in conjunction with significant pliability is the central obstacle for artificial muscles.
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The researchers characterized their synthetic muscle as a “high-efficiency magnetic composite actuator,” implying a sophisticated chemical amalgam of polymers interconnected to replicate the contraction and relaxation of muscles.
One of these polymers is capable of having its rigidity spectrum modified and is situated within a matrix exhibiting magnetic microparticles across its expanse, which can also be regulated. This empowers the muscle to be animated and governed via the adjustable rigidity, thereby permitting its locomotion.
The investigators’ novel design merges a pair of unique cross-linking mechanisms. The primary one is a covalently bonded chemical framework (a minimum of two atoms that interchange electrons to secure a more stable arrangement) and a mutable, physically interactive network. These two mechanisms, formulated in this fashion, deliver the resilience for the muscle to operate long-term, as stated by the investigators in the report.
The equilibrium between rigidity and pliability is proficiently addressed through a dual cross-linking structure, and the physical network is additionally bolstered by the incorporation of a class of microparticle (NdFeB) upon the surface of the muscle capable of being endowed with a function by means of a colorless liquid (octadecyltrichlorosilane). The particles are strewn throughout the polymer matrix.
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The composite muscle attains stiffness when sustaining substantial loads and softens when it needs to compress. In its solidified state, the synthetic muscle, registering a mere 0.04 ounce (1.13 grams), can uphold up to 11 pounds (5 kilograms) — nearly 4,400 times its particular weight.
A human muscle contracts at roughly 40% strain, yet the fabricated muscle realizes a strain of 86.4% — surpassing double that of the human muscle, as indicated by the researchers in the paper. This facilitates a performance intensity of 1,150 kilojoules per meter cubed — dwarfing what human tissue is capable of by 30-fold.
The investigators employed a uniaxial tensile evaluation to gauge the potency of their artificial muscle. A form of mechanical assessment that administers a traction force upon a subject until it ruptures – the extension is quantified against the exerted force to ascertain its ultimate tensile fortitude.
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