Preparation and Characterization of Shape Memory Elastomeric Composites

Shape memory polymers (SMPs) are a class of smart poly-meric materials that have the ability to “memorize ” a perma-nent shape, be manipulated to retain or “fix ” a temporary shape, and later recover to its original (permanent) shape upon a stimulus such as heat, electricity, or irradiation.1-3 A large number of SMPs have been developed and utilized for actua-tors, deployable medical devices, smart adhesives, and sensors, among others. However, very few of the existing SMPs are soft and elastomeric at the application temperature, although the demand for soft actuators is evident.4 Three existing examples we are aware of include a main-chain liquid crystalline elasto-mer (LCE),5 EPDM ionomers incorporating a range of crystal-lizable fatty acid salts,6 and hydrogels with crystallizable alkyl side chains.7 Each case involved some custom synthesis that presents inherent challenges to utilization at large scale. Here