Chapter – 3 : Morden Construction Material

WHAT ARE SMART MATERIALS?

“Smartness” of a material is characterized by self-adaptability, self

sensing memory and decision making. Smart materials are the materials
that respond with shape or other property change upon application of
externally applied driving forces (electrical, magnetic and thermal). In
other words, smart materials refer to materials that can undergo
controlled transformations through physical interactions and are
structured with multifunctionality. They have they are able to respond to
slight variation in temperature, moisture, pH, electric or magnetic fields
by changing their appearance, state and properties. They are exemplified
as boon in tackling the problem of deteriorating civil infrastructure and
they had influenced the life cost of these structures by reducing the
upfront construction cost as they allow reduced safety factors in initial
design.

OVERVIEW OF SMART MATERIALS:

 Smart materials are the materials which have certain characteristics
by which they have special position in our life. We cannot think
about these development and growth.

 Smart materials sense and respond to their environment and

application in areas as diverse as health, defence, packaging etc.

 Smart materials can think and do amazing things. They are very
quick respond to the environment around it. However it has
different applications, it has some advantages and limitations.

ADVANTAGES OF SMART MATERIALS:

· High energy density.

· Excellent bandwidth.
· Novel function such as huge volume change as a function of
temperature exhibited by the smart gels.
· Some smart materials are self repaired materials as the materials can
repaired itself if damaged occurs.
· Smart materials have better durability and reliability.
· Smart materials reduces the production cost.
· Smart materials get smarter with ability to better control of shape &
size.
· Smart materials can easily cooled with nano fluids.
· Smart materials extensively used in Textile Industries changes the face
of this industries.
· Smart materials reduces the weight of component used in the
mechanical & electrical industries.
· The Structural Health Monitoring of smart materials can easily &
perfectly done.
· Smart materials are gives excellent results in Communication
Technology &
Information Technology

LIMITATIONS OF SMART MATERIALS:

· Smart materials are very expensive.
· They are not easily available in market.
· They are very sensible so they need proper care while storage it.
· Smart materials needs proper skill to recognize it among other
materials.

APPLICATIONS OF SMART MATERIALS:

· In the Fast response valve.
· High power density hydraulic pumps.
· Active bearings for reduction of machine noise.
· In the manufacturing of footwear.
· Sports equipment & precision machining.
· Vibration & acoustic sensors.
· In the dampers.
· There are many possibilities for such materials and structures in the
manmade world.
· Engineering structures could operate at the very limit of their
performance envelopes and to their structural limits without fear of
exceeding either.

· The different fields have various applications of smart materials. The

different fields are listed below.

1. Application of Smart materials in Medical Technology.

2. Application of Smart materials in Automobiles Engineering.
3. Application of Smart materials in Mechanical Engineering.
4. Application of Smart materials in Civil Engineering.
5. Application of Smart materials in Aerospace.
6. Application of Smart materials in Mechatronics.
SMART MATERIAL CATEGORIZATION:

Stimuli-responsive polymers are polymers that respond sharply to

small changes in physical or chemical conditions with relatively large
phase or property changes. The macroscopic changes that occur are
reversible; therefore, the system is capable of returning to its initial state
when the trigger is removed.

The bioinspired functional materials may be fabricated by developing

novel technology or methods such as synthesis, self-assembly, and soft
lithography at micro- or nanolevel or multilevels and, in addition, the
multidisciplinary procedures of physical or chemical methods and
nanotechnology to mimic the biological multiscale micro-/nanostructures
onto one-/two-dimensional surface materials.
 Piezoelectric materials:

If you’ve ever used a cigarette lighter, experienced a medical ultrasound

in a doctor's office or turned on a gas burner, you’ve used
piezoelectricity.

Piezoelectric materials are materials that have the ability to

generate internal electrical charge from applied mechanical
stress. The term piezo is Greek for "push."

Several naturally occurring substances in nature demonstrate the

piezoelectric effect. These include:

 Bone
 Crystals
 Certain ceramics
 DNA
 Enamel
 Silk
 Dentin, and many more.

Materials that exhibit the piezoelectric effect also demonstrate the

inverse piezoelectric effect (also called the reverse or converse
piezoelectric effect). The inverse piezoelectric effect is the internal
generation of mechanical strain in response to an applied electrical field.

The direct piezoelectric effect is that these materials, when subjected to

mechanical stress, generate an electric charge proportional to that stress.
An example of the use of the direct effect is found in gas lighters.
Piezoelectric sensors, like acceleration sensors and pressure sensors, also
exploit the direct piezoelectric effect.
The inverse piezoelectric effect is that the same materials become
strained when an electric field is applied, the strain again being
proportional to the applied field. An example of the use of the inverse
effect is found in buzzers. Piezoelectric actuators, which can be used for
micro-positioning, also rely on the inverse piezoelectric effect.
Why are piezoelectric materials of interest?

Imagine walking down the street and charging your phone as you walk,
charging your laptop by typing, or powering a nightclub by dancing on a
piezoelectric floor! The concept of piezoelectricity has been around since
the 1880s and was discovered by Jacques and Pierre Currie. Despite
already being used in things like lighters to create the spark that ignites
the gas, using it as an everyday energy source is still a long way off.

2. The detection principle of piezoelectric materials for the engineering

structure. The method adopted is to make full use of the piezoelectric
effect of piezoelectric ceramics, which can be used as the driver of
transmitting signal or the sensor of receiving signal by arranging it at the
key position or the designated position of the structure. When driving the
piezo ceramic actuator by applying an excitation signal while recording
the received signal from the sensor, the possible damage to the structure
(especially the crack) can cause a change in the received signal (Figure1).

Using this principle, the piezoelectric ceramic sensor is arranged inside

the structure, which is combined with identification algorithm, and can be
timely and effective to infer the general location of the structural damage
and the specific extent in order to achieve the true sense of the structural
health monitoring. Therefore, it is of great technical and economic
significance to conduct theoretical and practical research on the structural
health monitoring using piezoelectric ceramics, so we can avoid the high
maintenance cost and extend the service life of the structure.
Piezoelectric ceramic materials in civil engineering structure health
monitoring have the following advantages:

(1) Piezoelectric ceramic materials are widely used in recent years, and
they are the new intelligent materials. How to make good use of this new
material will have an important impact on social development.

(2) The use of piezoelectric ceramics in the structural health monitoring

provide a new idea for the development of a sensor sensitive, safe,
reliable, and large measuring range of new sensors.

(3) The use of the characteristics of piezoelectric ceramics on the

structure of buildings, and structures for health monitoring determine the
location of structural damage to assess the extent of structural damage
much better.

(4) The piezoelectric ceramic materials which are monitoring devices

made of low-cost and reliable, can be widely used in the field of civil
engineering, and can bring good economic benefits.

Shape Memory Alloys (SMA)

Shape Memory alloys are metals that exhibit the properties of pseudo-
elasticity and the Shape Memory Effect.

Pseudo-elasticity- an almost rubber-like flexibility

Shape Memory Effect – unique ability of materials to be severely

deformed and then return to their original shape through stimulus

Current popular Shape Memory Alloys include NiTi (Nickel Titanium),

CuZnAl, and CuAlNi.

How do SMAs work?

A solid state phase change occurs which involves a molecular

rearrangement. The molecules are so tightly packed, however, that the
metal remains in a solid state throughout the entire transformation. A
temperature increase of only 10 degrees Celsius is required for the phase
change to occur. The two phases that the alloy can exist in are:
Martensite – the lower temperature phase of a Shape Memory Alloy where
the metal is deformable

Austenite – the higher temperature, strong phase of the Shape Memory

Alloy

Pseudo-elasticity occurs in the Austenite phase without a change in

temperature. The load on the Smart Memory Alloy is increased until it
turns into Martensite. When the load is reduced, the SMA reverts back
into Austenite

Application of SMAs

Aeronautics:

Alloys can be used to create flexible wings in aircrafts using Shape

Memory wires. The wire can be heated with an electric current and can
then be bent down or stretched out. This eliminates the need for hinge as
in used in aircrafts today. It also eliminates large hydraulic lines which
reduce weight, maintenance and the cost of aircrafts. The main groups
doing research in this field are currently the Defense Advanced Research
Project Agency (DARPA) and Boeing (SMA/MEMS Research Group).

Surgical Tools:

Bone plates can be made of NiTi molecules and used exactly like a current
bone plate is used. The Nickel Titanium is cooled during surgery and then
as it heats up to the body temperature, it attempts to contract which
applies pressure to the break site. This steady pressure aids the healing
process and reduces recovery time of a major bone break (Lenau).

Muscle Wires:

SMAs are very good at mimicking human muscles and tendons so they
can be used to create humanlike movements in robots. A computer can
be used to control an electric current through the Shape Memory wires
which will heat and cool the wire to bend and extend, mimicking
something like the movement of a finger (Lenau).

Smart Gels

What is a Smart Gel and how do they work?

Smart gels contain fluids (usually water) in a matrix of large, complex

polymers. These polymers are special in that they respond to stimuli in
an advanced way. Types of stimuli that affect smart gels are physical and
chemical factors. Temperature, light, electric forces, magnetic forces, and
mechanical forces (shaking) are types of physical interactions on the gel
that will precipitate a reaction. Chemical stimuli are usually pH changes
or solvent exchanges (Hirai). The reaction of the smart gel is always an
expansion or contraction within milliseconds upon stimulation.
Essentially, when a gel swells, it absorbs additional fluid into it. Likewise,
when it deflates, it expels this fluid out of its membrane. The expansion
and contraction are usually caused by a change in the polymer; the
stimulus alters the polymer by making it more or less hydrophilic. For
example a significant pH decrease will neutralize ions in the gel,
precipitating the polymers to be less hydrophilic and causing the gel to
contract (University of Sheffield).

While smart gels do not depend on nanotechnology, in many cases their

effects are greatly aided by using nanoparticles. While microparticles
usually allow the gel to function properly, smaller particles at the
nanoscale increase intended effects dramatically. A great example of this
is in the use of ferromagnetic particles. Ferromagnets are tiny particles
that act as little bar magnets. In this example, scientists apply a
magnetic field on a smart gel to induce the ferromagnets to move. This
movement raises the temperature of the gel and consequently causes the
gel to expand. While microparticles of iron still allow the gel to expand,
nanoparticles make the gel more responsive to the magnetic field
(Dagani).

How can smart gels be applied?

Applications of smart gels permeate into many various fields including

both medical and industrial. While smart gels are in their infancy in the
medical field, there is great promise for the technology. The two main
applications for smart gels are in artificial muscle fabrication and drug
release. In drug release, a smart gel containing the desired water soluble
drug is injected into the patient. After receiving a certain stimulus
(usually temperature or pH), a hydrogel (a type of smart gel) will expand
by allowing the water and salt in the blood to enter the gel.
Consequently, the drug will be released from the gel in the desired
environment. This concept can be used to release drugs to attack tumors
or aid specific areas of the body (i.e. eye drops for the eye). This concept
is beneficial because the area, duration, and speed of the release can be
better controlled with a smart gel. Eventually hydrogels could mimic the
behavior of the pancreas by releasing chemicals to achieve the optimal
glucose concentration. This could tremendously help the medical industry
by aiding patients with defective pancreases (i.e. diabetes).
Nanoparticles well help this medical technology by increasing the
effectiveness of the gel by increase the surface area of its constituents
(Dagani).

Development in smart gels’ electrical properties could result in the future

production of artificial muscles. When an electric field is applied on
certain types of gels, there is an asymmetric charge distribution within
the gel. This asymmetry yields different rates of expansion throughout
the gel. In fact, in some cases, one end might contract while the other
expands. Asymmetry can also be created by producing heterogeneous
gels with different rates of expansion throughout the gel. As a result of
the electric field and asymmetry, the gel bends. This bending is
significant because it mimics the role of muscles in the body which
respond to electrical signals sent from the brain by creating mechanical
energy. With more development, these gels could become replacement
muscles for patients. While this technology is only in its infancy, the
manifestation would aid many who are in need of artificial muscles
(Dagani and Hirai).

One example of how smart gels could help industry is in the utilization of
shake gels. Shake gels respond to forces applied on them by becoming
firm. Shake gels could tremendously aid shock absorbers. When driving
over a pothole, the shake gel would firm up based on the size of hole and
the weight of the car. This adjustment would optimize the absorber’s
response to the shock.

Rheological Materials

What is a Rheological Material and how do they work?

Generally, a rheological material is a material which can change is

physical state very quickly in reaction to a stimulus. Rheological
materials only react when an electric or magnetic field is applied. The
material always changes between a liquid and a solid state (Lord Corp).
While rheological materials that react to an electric field (ER) have some
very specific uses and are more well known, in almost all cases
magnetorheological (MR) materials are more practical. Unlike ER
materials, they function in the presence of impurities and only low
voltages are needed to stimulate them. For this reason, ER materials will
be omitted from the following explanation (Lord Business Unit).

MR materials consist of iron particles suspended in an oil or watery fluid.

These tiny iron particles each have a “magnetic moment” and thus act
like tiny bar magnets. They posses these magnetic properties because
each particle’s “3d” shell is not fully filled with electrons. When a magnetic
field is applied onto the fluid, the random ordering of molecules in the
liquid aligns itself to the axis of the field. Consequently, the structure of
the molecules becomes organized and symmetrical. Essentially the field
causes the liquid to change into a solid very quickly (Lord Corp).

While nano sized iron particles are not needed for the material to
function, nanoparticles significantly help the technology by reducing the
IUT effect. The IUT effect, or In-Use-Thickening, is when prolonged use
causes the liquid to become so thick that it cannot function properly. In
most cases this problem must be minimized for better reliability and
longetivity. Nano sized iron particles have been proven to better
minimize the IUT effect. Thus nanotechnology has played an integral role
in the development of this smart material technology (Carlson).

How are Rheological Materials being applied?

This property of these smart rheological materials can be applied to

industry in many useful ways. One of the most practical services this
technology can provide is dampening. For example, dampers on bridges
and building can minimize vibrational shock from wind and seismic
activity. Essentially, as the structural support is shaken by the vibrational
shock, an electrical coil will induce a magnetic field on the MR fluid
causing the fluid to stiffen. The coil will pulse many times per seconds in
order to apply a force on the supports and reduce the shock. This
technology could aid in structural support during earthquakes and high
winds (Bonsor). Unlike other infant smart material technologies,
rheological materials have already been applied in dampers, brake fluids
and shock absorbers.

Electrostrictive and Magnetostrictive Materials

What is an Electrostrictive/Magnetostrictive Material?

A magnetostrictive material consists of tiny ferromagnets. These

ferromagnets, usually iron, nickel or cobalt, have small magnetic
moments as a result of their “3d” shells that are not completely filled with
electrons. Essentially, the ferromagnets act like tiny permanent bar
magnets. When a magnetic field is applied to the material, the randomly
located magnets realign themselves with the field’s axis. This new
ordered structure causes the solid to either stretch or shrink. When a
mechanical force is applied to these materials, the opposite effect occurs:
the material induces a magnetic field (Villari Effect). This field can be
used to create an electric current and thus translate mechanical energy
into electrical energy (Sensorland).

Electric fields and magnetic fields are closely related. While

electrostrictive materials differ in some ways, the principles behind the
physics is very similar; when an electric field is applied, the material will
either stretch or shrink.

Just like rheological materials, dependable and practical magnetostrictive

materials depend on nanotechnology. Microscopic ferromagnets are too
big to posses the desired effects necessary for future technological
growth. Nanoscale iron particles tremendously increase the material’s
magnetostrictive properties (Sensorland).

How can these materials be applied?

These materials show great promise because of the speed at which they
react and the precision of their movement. In the future, these materials
might be used in the fuel injection system. A specific amount of fuel
injected at a higher frequency could greatly improve the efficiency of car
engines. Additionally, these materials can be applied in active noise
cancellation, vibration cancellation, sonar, and more efficient dental tools
(Etrema Products).