Enhanced electromechanical performance of natural rubber dielectric elastomers achieved by in situ synthesis of silver nanoparticles on TiO2 nanoparticles

Dielectric elastomers (DEs) could transduce electrical energy to mechanical energy, but their applications are currently limited by the elevated driving voltages. To obtain satisfactory actuated strains at low voltages, titanate oxide@tannic acid-ferric ion@silver (labelled as TiO₂@TA-Fe³⁺@Ag) satellite-structure nanoparticles were obtained in this study by in situ synthesis followed by incorporating the nanoparticles into natural rubber (NR) to prepare DE composites (denoted as TiO₂@TA-Fe³⁺@Ag/NR). The presence of surface coating of TA-Fe³⁺ and Ag nanoparticles improved the electromechanical performance of TiO₂@TA-Fe³⁺@Ag/NR composites. Among the samples, 30 wt% TiO₂@TA-Fe³⁺@Ag/NR composite displayed a relatively high actuated strain of 9.09% at a relatively low electric field of 22.78 kV/mm. In sum, the green, facile, and cost-effective surface modification method looks promising for improving the electromechanical properties of particulate-filled polymer composites.