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Impedance response behavior and mechanism study of axon-like ionic conductive cellulose-based hydrogel strain sensor

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Abstract

As a promising candidate for flexible epidermal strain sensor, the obvious resistance sensing signal drift of ionic conductive hydrogel affects its practical application significantly, and the AC impedance analysis appears to be an effective test method. Here, the rarely reported impedance sensing mechanism was investigated based on an axon-like ionic conductive hydrogel strain sensor, which is composed of cellulose hydrogel particles (CHPs) as the core sensing medium, rubber tube as the elastic cortex, and stainless steel as the electrode. Specifically, the prepared hydrogel strain sensor exhibited a negative ion concentration-dependent impedance sensing behavior, the impedance variation (△Z/Z0) and sensitivity (GF) at 400% reach 441.5 and 630.1, respectively. What is more, the AC impedance sensing behavior of the hydrogel sensor displayed good strain amplitude identifiability in a wide strain range up to 400%, ultralow detection limit (0.1% strain), excellent rate independence, and outstanding long-term fatigue resistance. Importantly, an equivalent circuit model was built, and the variation of ion transport impedance and electric double-layer capacitance at the electrode-CHPs interface during the tension process were verified to be the internal sensing mechanism. What is more, the special skin–core structure can effectively solve the dehydration problem and poor mechanical property of hydrogel, and the amounts of interfaces between adjacent CHPs are also beneficial for improving the impedance responsivity. We believe the proposed impedance response mechanism will undoubtedly provide important guidance for the design of high-performance ionic conductive hydrogel strain sensor.

Graphical abstract

An equivalent circuit model was proposed for explaining the impedance response mechanism of axon-like skin core–structured hydrogel strain sensor.

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Funding

The research was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NO: 51803191, 12072325), the National Key R&D Program of China (2019YFA0706802), the 111 project (D18023), Key Scientific and Technological Project of Henan Province (202102210038).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Materials Processing and Mold, Ministry of Education, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450002, Henan, China

    Dianbo Zhang, Minyue Zhang, Jingwen Wang, Hongling Sun, Hu Liu, Chuntai Liu & Changyu Shen

  2. National Engineering Research Center for Advanced Polymer Processing Technology, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450002, Henan, China

    Dianbo Zhang, Minyue Zhang, Jingwen Wang, Hongling Sun, Hu Liu, Chuntai Liu & Changyu Shen

  3. Center for Advanced Materials Research, Zhongyuan University of Technology, Zhengzhou, 450007, Henan, China

    Dianbo Zhang & Liwei Mi

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  1. Dianbo Zhang
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Zhang, D., Zhang, M., Wang, J. et al. Impedance response behavior and mechanism study of axon-like ionic conductive cellulose-based hydrogel strain sensor. Adv Compos Hybrid Mater 5, 1812–1820 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42114-022-00437-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42114-022-00437-y

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