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Abstract:
A research group led by scientists from the RIKEN Center for Emergent Matter Science have developed a unique material, based on nanofillers embedded in hydrogels, which can channel mechanical energy in one direction but not the other, acting in a “nonreciprocal” way. With this composite material — which can be made in a variety of sizes — the team was able to use up-and-down vibrational motions to cause liquid droplets to rise within the material against gravity. Thus, using this material makes it possible to take advantage of random vibrations and move the material in the desired direction.
Channels mechanical energy in the preferred direction
Saitama, Japan | Posted April 14, 2023
Channeling energy in a favorable direction is an important property that truly makes life possible. Many basic biological functions such as photosynthesis and cellular respiration are made possible by channeling random fluctuations in nature in a non-reciprocal way, to keep systems from increasing in entropy, like the famous Maxwell’s demon. For example, devices that allow energy to move preferentially exist in electronics, where they allow AC current to be converted to DC current. Similar devices are used in the fields of photonics, magnetism and sound. However, despite the many potential uses, constructing devices that transmit mechanical energy has proved more difficult.
Now, the RIKEN-led group has developed an extraordinary yet uniform material that is relatively easy to manufacture and can perform this function. To make it, the group used a hydrogel—a soft material made mostly of water and a polyacrylamide network—and embedded graphene oxide nanofiller into it at an oblique angle. The hydrogel is fixed to the floor, so that the upper part can move when subjected to a shear force but not the bottom. And the filler is set at an oblique angle, so it tilts clockwise from top to bottom. When a shear force is applied from right to left to the inclined nanofillers, they tend to warp and therefore lose their resilience. But if the force is from the other direction, and the nanofillers are facing away from them, the shear force applied just makes them stretch longer, and they retain their strength. This allowed the sheet to deform in one direction but not the other, and in fact the group measured this difference, finding that the material was roughly 60 times more resistant in one direction than the other.
As an experiment to demonstrate what this could actually do, they made blocks of the material and placed them on vibrating stands. Depending on the tilt direction of the embedded nanofiller, the material is able to transmit vibrational energy through the material to make the droplet move to the right or left. They can also use vibrations to actuate circular motions which can be controlled clockwise or counterclockwise. When attaching the vibrating stand vertically, the drops of colored liquid placed on the hydrogel move upward against gravity as if by magic. In this way, the alternating vibrational motion, which is normally useless, is channeled to create clean motion.
Finally, as further testing, in collaboration with researchers from the RIKEN Hakubi Fellows program, the group placed Caenorhabditis elegans worms on the material, and although their movements were usually random, they ended up moving to one side or the other of the hydrogel. , depending on the tilt direction of the embedded nanofiller.
According to Yasuhiro Ishida of the RIKEN Center for Emergent Matter Science who led the project, “It was an amazing and surprising result to see how mechanical energy can be channeled in one direction in such a special way, in such an obvious way, and using materials that are quite easy to manufacture. and quite measurable. In the future, we plan to find applications for this material, with the hope that we can use it to effectively utilize vibrational energy that has hitherto been considered waste.”
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