Inspired by origami, North Carolina State University researchers have found a way to remotely control the order in which a two-dimensional (2-D) sheet folds itself into a three-dimensional (3-D) structure.
“A longstanding challenge in the field has been finding a way to control the sequence in which a 2-D sheet will fold itself into a 3-D object,” says Michael Dickey, a professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at NC State and co-corresponding author of a paper describing the work. “And as anyone who has done origami – or folded their laundry – can tell you, the order in which you make the folds can be extremely important.”
“The sequence of folding is important in life as well as in technology,” says co-corresponding author Jan Genzer, the S. Frank and Doris Culberson Distinguished Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at NC State. “On small length scales, sequential folding via molecular machinery enables DNA to pack efficiently into chromosomes and assists proteins to adopt a functional conformation. On large length scales, sequential folding via motors helps solar panels in satellites and space shuttles unfold in space. The advance of the current work is to induce materials to fold sequentially using only light.”
Specifically, the researchers have developed a technique to design and fabricate 2-D materials that can be controlled remotely in order to trigger any of the given folds to take place, in any order.
Dickey and Genzer were early leaders in the field of self-folding 3-D structures. In their landmark 2011 paper, the researchers outlined a technique in which a pre-stressed plastic sheet was run through a conventional inkjet printer to print bold black lines on the material. The material was then cut into a desired pattern and placed under an infrared light, such as a heat lamp.
The printed lines absorbed more energy than the rest of the material, causing the plastic to contract – creating a hinge that folded the sheets into 3-D shapes. By varying the width of the printed lines, or hinges, the researchers were able to change how far – and how quickly – each hinge folds. The technique is compatible with commercial printing techniques, such as screen printing, roll-to-roll printing, and inkjet printing, that are inexpensive and high-throughput but inherently 2-D.
The new advance uses essentially the same technique, but takes advantage of the fact that different colors of ink absorb different wavelengths, or colors, of light.
“By printing the hinges in different colors, we can control the order of the folds by altering the wavelengths of light that shines on the 2-D sheet,” Genzer says.
For example, if one hinge is printed in yellow and another hinge is printed in blue, the researchers can make the yellow hinge fold by exposing it to blue light. The blue hinge won’t fold, because blue ink doesn’t absorb blue light. The researchers can then make the blue hinge fold by exposing the sheet to red light.
In addition, by manipulating the colors of ink, the researchers were also able to get hinges to fold sequentially when exposed to a single wavelength of light. This is possible because some colors will absorb a given wavelength of light more efficiently than others.
“This is a proof-of-concept paper, but it opens the door to a range of potential applications using a simple and inexpensive process,” Dickey says.
“Ultimately, people are interested in self-assembling structures for multiple reasons, from shipping things in a flat package and having them assemble on site to having devices self-assemble in ‘clean’ environments for medical or electronic applications.”
Learn more: Researchers Remotely Control Sequence in Which 2-D Sheets Fold Into 3-D Structures
[osd_subscribe categories=’phase-change-materials-2′ placeholder=’Email Address’ button_text=’Subscribe Now for any new posts on the topic “PHASE-CHANGE MATERIALS”‘]
Receive an email update when we add a new PHASE-CHANGE MATERIALS article.
The Latest on: Phase-change materials
[google_news title=”” keyword=”phase-change materials” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
via Google News
The Latest on: Phase-change materials
- Sabic testing shows phase-change thermoplastics can help prevent thermal runaway in EV batterieson May 8, 2024 at 4:54 am
The Sabic sub-system level test series showed that a battery module box made from the company’s STAMAX™ 30YH570 long glass fiber polypropylene (PP) resin with intercellular thickness as low as 1mm has ...
- Enhancing Electronics with Advanced Composite Phase Change Materialson May 7, 2024 at 5:42 am
Composite PCMs enhance thermal management in electronics, offering improved heat dissipation and device longevity.
- Thermal Interface Pads and Materials Market Growth: 7.5% CAGR and USD 3.4 Billion Projected by 2033on May 6, 2024 at 8:05 am
The Thermal Interface Pads and Materials Market report, unveiled by Future Market Insights—an ESOMAR Certified Market Research and Consulting Firm—presents invaluable insights and meticulous analysis ...
- Multifunctional Composite Phase Change Materials Shielding for Electronicson April 23, 2024 at 5:00 pm
In a recent paper published in the journal Nano Energy Research, Chinese researchers at Beijing Normal University have been developing multifunctional composite phase change materials (PCMs) shielding ...
- Aerogel-based phase change materials improve thermal management, reduce microwave emissions in electronic deviceson April 23, 2024 at 9:48 am
Finally, the material was encased in paraffin wax, which can undergo phase change, as a method of thermal storage. The final material was then tested to see how well the composite hybrid aerogel ...
- phase changeon March 23, 2024 at 5:00 pm
This concrete, on the other hand, contains a low-temperature liquid paraffin which releases heat when it has a phase change, from a liquid to a solid. By incorporating the material into the ...
- Textiles and Clothing Newson October 25, 2023 at 5:00 pm
2022 — Textile engineers have developed a fabric woven out of ultra-fine nano-threads made in part of phase-change materials and other advanced substances that combine to produce a fabric that ...
- Phase-change materials for green heat transport and storage (CSC)on November 10, 2021 at 2:45 am
Both of these needs can be met by the same class of “phase-change” materials, since each of these technologies relies on cycling between two phases, taking advantage respectively of a large change in ...
- Using Phase Change Materials For Energy Storageon March 2, 2021 at 11:05 pm
Phase change materials are proving to be a useful tool to store excess energy and recover it later – storing energy not as electricity, but as heat. Let’s take a look at how the technology ...
via Bing News