IMPACT OF NANOFILLERS ON DIELECTRIC PROPERTIES OF POLYURETHANE ELASTOMERS: FROM SYNTHESIS TO FUTURE PROSPECTS

Abstract

Dielectric elastomer (DE) devices are soft or flexible capacitors, composed of a thin elastomeric membrane sandwiched between two compliant electrodes, that can transduce electrical to mechanical energy, and vice versa. Polyurethane possesses outstanding dielectric properties which can be applied in developing DE with excellent performance. Nevertheless, it still needs some modification to improve the dielectric properties to ensure their practicality in the industry. Researchers throughout the years had worked on several nanofillers such as graphene and barium titrate to enhance the dielectric performance of polyurethane elastomer to ensure their applicability in the field. This paper discusses the basic principle of dielectric elastomer as generator and actuator, the popular nanofillers used to enhance polyurethane dielectric constant, and the suitable application for polyurethane elastomer.