# Numerical Simulation Study on the Influence of MWCNT and Genipin Crosslinking on the Actuation Performance of Artificial Muscles

## TL;DR

This paper uses simulations to show how adding MWCNT and Genipin improves the movement performance of artificial muscles.

## Contribution

The study introduces a thermo-piezoelectric model to analyze how MWCNT and Genipin crosslinking affect artificial muscle actuation.

## Key findings

- MWCNT and Genipin crosslinking significantly improve artificial muscle actuation performance.
- The optimal crosslinking ratio is 43.34% MWCNT and 0.1% Genipin for maximum actuation.
- Crosslinked artificial muscles show better bending force and displacement than non-crosslinked ones.

## Abstract

To enhance the actuation performance of artificial muscles, a thermo-piezoelectric coupled model was developed based on the inverse piezoelectric effect of piezoelectric bimorphs. By altering the effective piezoelectric coefficient, elastic modulus, and effective thermal expansion coefficient of the thermo-piezoelectric bimorph model, the bending motion of artificial muscles was simulated. The effects of multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) and Genipin crosslinking on the bending force and output displacement of the artificial muscles were analyzed, illustrating how crosslinking affects the equivalent actuation response. The results showed that MWCNT and Genipin crosslinking significantly improved the actuation performance of the artificial muscles. Through numerical simulation, the optimal crosslinking ratio was determined to be 43.34% MWCNT and 0.1% Genipin, at which the best actuation performance was achieved. Compared to non-crosslinked techniques, the artificial muscles with crosslinked structures exhibited markedly enhanced actuation behavior.