Monte Carlo Simulation of High Strain Ionomeric

The transport of charge due to electric stimulus is the primary mechanism of actuation for a class of polymeric active materials known as ionomeric polymer transducers (IPT). Ion transport in IPT depends on the morphology of the hydrated Nafion membrane, the morphology of the metal electrodes, the nature of the cations and the level of hydration. According to the literature, percolation theory, micromechanics model and computational model have been used to describe the actuation of IPTs. However, due to the scales used in those models it is hard to find the ion distribution during the actuation considering complicated morphology inside the material. Monte Carlo simulation of ion hopping model has been employed to track the position of each ion under an applied voltage.  Based on this mesoscopic structure, multiscale modeling using supercomputer is built to predict the actuation response and compared with experimental data. The main feature of the model is to enable tailoring the microscopic structure for the better macroscopic response of the IPT. For example, one of the ultimate goals is to include the influence of the polymer-metal interface with complicated geometry in the modeling for this interfacial area is critical to improve mechanical strain of the transducer.

Return to Current Projects