Polymeric Materials in Sensor Applications

A special issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360). This special issue belongs to the section "Polymer Applications".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 10 May 2024 | Viewed by 2991

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Materials, Textiles and Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, Universiteit Gent, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
Interests: biopotential sensors; conductive polymers; smart textiles; flexible sensors; responsive polymers

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Engineering and Architecture, Department of Materials, Textiles and Chemical Engineering, Universiteit Gent, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
Interests: smart textiles; sensors; wearable textile system; textile antenna; surface modification
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The use of polymers for sensing has been popular in the 21st century because they offer advantages over traditional polymers, such as their ability to respond to stimuli, as well as weight and flexibility over metallic materials. Because of their electrical conductivity, carbon nanotubes (CNTs), polythiophene (PTh), poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT), polyaniline, (PANI), polypyrrole (PPy), and their composites are among the polymers used in a variety of sensing applications. The unique sensing and actuation characteristics of intelligent and responsive polymers to external conditions have also been exploited for the development of responsive materials such as chromic, shape memory, thermoregulation application, etc. Moreover, these polymers could be used in their present form or could be applied to a variety of substrates, such as paper, leather, textiles, plastics, and metals, for use in sensing applications at various stages. Thus, polymers are promising materials for sensing applications in different domains. Conductive and responsive polymers, their fabrication technologies, and their application for sensing are key subjects of this Special Issue. Original research articles, reviews, and communication manuscripts are welcome.

Dr. Granch Berhe Tseghai
Prof. Dr. Lieva Van Langenhove
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • conductive polymers
  • responsive polymers
  • smart materials
  • flexible sensors
  • polymer sensors
  • polymer coating
  • polymerization

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

22 pages, 9635 KiB  
Article
Hook Fabric Electroencephalography Electrode for Brain Activity Measurement without Shaving the Head
by Granch Berhe Tseghai, Benny Malengier, Kinde Anlay Fante and Lieva Van Langenhove
Polymers 2023, 15(18), 3673; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15183673 - 06 Sep 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1074
Abstract
In this research, novel electroencephalogram (EEG) electrodes were developed to detect high-quality EEG signals without the requirement of conductive gels, skin treatments, or head shaving. These electrodes were created using electrically conductive hook fabric with a resistance of 1 Ω/sq. The pointed hooks [...] Read more.
In this research, novel electroencephalogram (EEG) electrodes were developed to detect high-quality EEG signals without the requirement of conductive gels, skin treatments, or head shaving. These electrodes were created using electrically conductive hook fabric with a resistance of 1 Ω/sq. The pointed hooks of the conductive fabric establish direct contact with the skin and can penetrate through hair. To ensure excellent contact between the hook fabric electrode and the scalp, a knitted-net EEG bridge cap with a bridging effect was employed. The results showed that the hook fabric electrode exhibited lower skin-to-electrode impedance compared to the dry Ag/AgCl comb electrode. Additionally, it collected high-quality signals on par with the standard wet gold cups and commercial dry Ag/AgCl comb electrodes. Moreover, the hook fabric electrode displayed a higher signal-to-noise ratio (33.6 dB) with a 4.2% advantage over the standard wet gold cup electrode. This innovative electrode design eliminates the need for conductive gel and head shaving, offering enhanced flexibility and lightweight characteristics, making it ideal for integration into textile structures and facilitating convenient long-term monitoring. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polymeric Materials in Sensor Applications)
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16 pages, 4777 KiB  
Article
Process Parameters and Geometry Effects on Piezoresistivity in Additively Manufactured Polymer Sensors
by Marijn Goutier, Karl Hilbig, Thomas Vietor and Markus Böl
Polymers 2023, 15(9), 2159; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym15092159 - 30 Apr 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1322
Abstract
The current work experimentally determined how the initial resistance and gauge factor in additively manufactured piezoresistive sensors are affected by the material, design, and process parameters. This was achieved through the tensile testing of sensors manufactured with different infill angles, layer heights, and [...] Read more.
The current work experimentally determined how the initial resistance and gauge factor in additively manufactured piezoresistive sensors are affected by the material, design, and process parameters. This was achieved through the tensile testing of sensors manufactured with different infill angles, layer heights, and sensor thicknesses using two conductive polymer composites. Linear regression models were then used to analyze which of the input parameters had significant effects on the sensor properties and which interaction effects existed. The findings demonstrated that the initial resistance in both materials was strongly dependent on the sensor geometry, decreasing as the cross-sectional area was increased. The resistance was also significantly influenced by the layer height and the infill angle, with the best variants achieving a resistance that was, on average, 22.3% to 66.5% lower than less-favorable combinations, depending on the material. The gauge factor was most significantly affected by the infill angle and, depending on the material, by the layer height. Of particular interest was the finding that increasing in the infill angle resulted in an increase in the sensitivity that outweighed the associated increase in the initial resistance, thereby improving the gauge factor by 30.7% to 114.6%, depending on the material. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Polymeric Materials in Sensor Applications)
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