High breakdown-strength composites from liquid silicone rubbers

Abstract

In this paper we investigate the performance of liquid silicone rubbers (LSRs) as dielectric elastomer transducers. Commonly used silicones in this application include room-temperature vulcanisable (RTV) silicone elastomers and composites thereof. Pure LSRs and their composites with commercially available fillers (an anatase TiO2, a core–shell TiO2-SiO2 and a CaCu3Ti4O12 filler) are evaluated with respect to dielectric permittivity, elasticity (Young’s modulus) and electrical breakdown strength. Film formation properties are also evaluated. The best-performing formulations are those with anatase TiO2 nanoparticles, where the highest relative dielectric permittivity of 5.6 is obtained, and with STX801, a core–shell morphology TiO2-SiO2 filler from Evonik, where the highest breakdown strength of 173 V μm−1 is obtained.