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Multifunctional nylon filaments for simultaneous ultra-violet light and strain sensing

  • Regular Article – Optical Phenomena and Photonics
  • Published:
The European Physical Journal D Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Webbings are critical load-bearing components that are frequently exposed to severe environments. To date, sensing techniques for applied strain and ultra-violet (UV) irradiation on webbings are still lacking. Here, we put forward a class of multifunctional filaments to bridge this technical gap. Multifunctional filaments are fabricated by attaching functional materials to the filaments’ surfaces through a pressurized coating process. UV-sensitivity is accomplished by a layer of photochromic materials coated on the filament. Upon UV irradiation, the photochromic filaments demonstrate a rich color variation that could support UV sensing. The optical responses of the photochromic filaments are elucidated by a mathematical model based on the photochemistry of the underlying chemical reactions. Strain-sensitivity is realized by a layer of photonic crystals coated on the filament. An applied strain modulates the closely packed nano-structures of the photonic crystals, leading to a shift in the filament color. We demonstrate that by incorporating photochromic materials and photonic crystals on the same filament, it is possible to accomplish simultaneous UV and strain sensing. The proposed filaments could be embedded in webbings to enable noninvasive monitoring of their integrity.

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Data Availability Statement

This manuscript has no associated data or the data will not be deposited.[Authors’ comment: The datasets generated and analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.]

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the U.S. Navy through Contract No. N68936-21-C-0021. The authors thank Mr. Yichen Guo for his help conducting some experimental trials.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Tennessee Technological University, 115 W. 10th Street, Cookeville, TN, 38505, USA

    Peng Zhang

  2. Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and Center for Urban Science and Progress, New York University Tandon School of Engineering, 370 Jay Street, Brooklyn, NY, 11201, USA

    Nicco Ulbricht & Alain Boldini

  3. Luna Innovations Incorporated, Blacksburg, VA, 24060, USA

    Osgar John Ohanian III

  4. Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Department of Biomedical Engineering, and Center for Urban Science and Progress, New York University Tandon School of Engineering, 370 Jay Street, Brooklyn, NY, 11201, USA

    Maurizio Porfiri

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  1. Peng Zhang
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  5. Maurizio Porfiri
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Contributions

Conceptualization: PZ, OJOIII, MP; Methodology: PZ, OJOIII, MP; Formal analysis and investigation: PZ, NU, AB, OJOIII, MP; Writing - original draft preparation: PZ; Writing - review and editing: PZ, NU, AB, OJOIII, MP; Funding acquisition: PZ, OJOIII, MP; Resources: MP; Supervision: MP.

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Correspondence to Maurizio Porfiri.

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Zhang, P., Ulbricht, N., Boldini, A. et al. Multifunctional nylon filaments for simultaneous ultra-violet light and strain sensing. Eur. Phys. J. D 77, 44 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1140/epjd/s10053-023-00626-4

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