Control of the dynamic motion of a gel actuator driven by the Belousov-Zhabotinsky reaction

A novel self-oscillating gel actuator with gradient structure, which generates a pendulum motion by fixing one edge of the gel without external stimuli was achieved. The gel was synthesized by copolymerizing the ruthenium catalyst for the Belousov-Zhabotinsky reaction with N-isopropylacrylamide and 2-acrylamido- 2-methylpropane sulfonic acid. Furthermore, we clarified that the period and amplitude for the self-oscillating behavior of the gel actuator are controllable by changing the composition, temperature, and size of the gel. The maximum amplitude of the novel gel actuator is about a 100 times larger than that of the conventional self-oscillating gel system.