Multifunctional Conductive Elastomers Based on TannicAcid and Polymerizable 1‑Butyl-3-methylimidazoliumChloride/Acrylic Acid Deep Eutectic Solvent

Abstract

It is attractive, though challenging, to integrate multiple functions into one conductive elastomer, which can be used in a wide variety of complex scenarios. Here, a series of multifunctional conductive elastomers were fabricated by incorporating various amounts of tannic acid (TA) into the polymerization of 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride/acrylic acid-type deep eutectic solvent. The obtained conductive elastomers exhibit a combination of desirable properties, including high transparency (an average transmittance of 94.3%), ultrahigh stretchability (1250%), reliable self-healing ability (87.5% healing efficiency for 24 h), favorable conductivity (1.3 × 10^–2 mS·cm^–1), and excellent temperature tolerance (−20 to 120 °C). Simultaneously, the conductive elastomers showed excellent adhesion to various substrates. Those fabricated conductive elastomer-based sensors could sensitively detect and distinguish various motions with good stability and repeatability from −20 to 120 °C. In addition, we have demonstrated the practical suitability of the fabricated elastomers in constructing flexible electroluminescent devices. The conductive elastomers are believed to show great promise in next-generation wearable electronic devices.