Engineering Creativity Award: PVDF Prezoelectric Film Used as Activator in a Linear Construction Pump

本研究项目的目的是研究使用聚偏氟乙烯（PVF）（一种压电聚合物薄膜）作为粘性流体泵的致动器。这种材料由于施加电压而发生变形。利用这种效应，可以通过对薄膜施加电压来产生泵收缩，使其厚度扩大，同时减少其长度和宽度。这种泵送粘性流体的方法由于总体上简单而具有优点。有一些重要的问题需要研究：(1)连接形成环是复杂的，表面的金属化和内部的PVF材料需要连接；(2)与环相比，材料作为平面材料的变形特性；与产生的磁场和电干扰有关的问题，以及(3)施加顺序电压的方法。这种泵相对便宜，没有活动部件，也不会搅动或接触水流。它是生物惰性的，允许插入活的有机体。这种类型的泵在生物医学应用中很有用

The objective of this research project is to investigate the use of polyvinylidene flouride (PVF) (a piezoelectric polymer film) as the actuator for a viscous fluid pump. This material undergoes deformation due to an applied voltage. Using this effect, a pump constriction could be generated by applying a voltage to the film causing it to expand its thickness while decreasing its length and width. This method of pumping viscous fluids has merit because of its overall simplicity. There are significant problem areas to be investigated: (1) the joining to form a ring is complex, metallization on the surface and the PVF material on the interior are required to be connected, (2) the characteristics of deformation of the material as a flat material as compared to a ring; the problems associated with a produced magnetic field and with electrical interference, and (3) a method of applying sequential voltage. The pump would be relatively inexpensive, have no moving parts and would not churn or contact the flow. It would be biologically inert allowing insertion into a living organism. This type of pump could prove useful in biomedical applications