Thermoplastic liquid crystal elastomer soft actuators

This invited article is an account of a lecture on thermoplastic liquid crystal elastomers (LCEs) given at the 16th European Conference on Liquid Crystals (ECLC) in Rende, Italy. Currently most LCE actuators are permanently crosslinked thermoset. We avoid permanently crosslinked networks and instead obtain melt- and re-processable, recyclable thermoplastic LCE actuators by introducing H-bond interactions as physical crosslinks. Post-polymerisation of the LCE actuators is not required. This short proceedings article summarises the research carried out in our group on thermoplastic LCE actuators. The LCEs show both temperature and light-driven deformations and thermoplastic properties, affording sustainable soft actuators exhibiting melt-processable and recyclable functionalities compatible with large-scale industrial processing methods. It is envisioned that these polymers will serve as starting point for industrially-relevant smart materials that are applicable in our society for a myriad of applications including soft robotics, smart textiles, smart surface, artificial muscles, and deployable soft actuating devices.