Are you an EPFL student looking for a semester project?
Work with us on data science and visualisation projects, and deploy your project as an app on top of Graph Search.
Publication
Are you an EPFL student looking for a semester project?
Work with us on data science and visualisation projects, and deploy your project as an app on top of Graph Search.
Flame-retardant coatings are crucial for intelligent systems operating in high-temperature (300-800 degrees C) scenarios, which typically involve multi-joint discrete or continuous kinematic systems. These multi-segment motion generation systems call for conformable yet resilient skin for dexterous work, including firefighting, packaging inflammable substances, encapsulating energy storage devices, and preventing from burning. In fire scenes, a flame-retardant soft robot shall protect integrated electronic components safely and work for navigation and surveillance effectively. Here, we establish fire-resistant robotic mechanisms with montmorillonite (MMT)-biocompatible hydrogel skin, offering effective flame retardancy (similar to 78 degrees C surface temperature after 3 min in fire) and high post-fire stretchability (similar to 360% uniaxial tensile strain). Fatigue test results in the MMT-hydrogel polymer matrix to portray a change in post-fire energy consumption of similar to 21% (between the first cycle and the 200th cycle), further indicating robustness. MMT-hydrogel synthetic skin medium is then applied to everyday household items and electronics, offering appealing protections in fire scenes (
,