Electrorheological elastomer for simultaneous enhancements in durability and micro-vibration suppression

Abstract

Electrorheological elastomers (EREs) with tunable stiffness and damping properties have emerged as advanced smart soft materials. In this study, we propose a novel hybrid EREs, which incorporates TiO₂ anchored on hollow carbon spheres (TiO₂/HCs), aimed at enhancing tunable stiffness and exceptional durability. The precursor of the EREs exhibits a reduction in zero-field viscosity attributed to the inclusion of nano-TiO₂, which presents considerable advantages in the manufacturing process of EREs. Furthermore, a comprehensive analysis reveals that the prepared EREs possess favorable electro-viscoelastic properties and remarkable energy dissipation capabilities. Experimental results from quasi-static compression experiments and stress relaxation tests indicate that the isotropic EREs exhibits a significant electro-induced modulus increase from 1.26 MPa to 1.51 MPa. We have designed an effective micro-vibration suppression prototype by integrating the TiO₂/HCs ERE with theoretical analysis. This prototype demonstrates a substantial reduction in transmission amplitudes across a frequency range of 20 Hz to 54 Hz, achieving a maximum micro-vibration isolation efficiency of 37.2%.