Smart materials:

 Smart materials:
Smart materials are defined as materials that sense and react to environmental conditions or
stimuli (e.g., mechanical, chemical, electrical, or magnetic signals).

 Nitinol:
Advantages:
nitinol is protected from corrosion by a protective surface layer composed of titanium dioxide.
When properly processed, the biocompatibility and corrosion resistance of nitinol is excellent
and provides flexibility and the necessary strength for many applications.
It has unique properties, including super elasticity or pseudoplasticity and “shape memory”
properties.

Disadvantages:
Nitinol is quite expensive and is difficult to process by machine.
But its unique properties, such as super elasticity, shape memory, biocompatibility and
fatigue resistance, make it essential for medical applications.
It also has a low energy efficiency.

Polymorph:
Advantages:
Because of the safe handling temperatures, polymorph is a safe alternative to plaster of Paris
or traditional plastic moulding techniques.
Once cooled, Polymorph is very similar in appearance and physical properties to many
polyethene’s.
Polymorph is stronger and tougher than most polythene used in domestic products.

Disadvantages:
Polymorph is a true thermoplastic and can therefore be re-heated and thermoformed many
times without deterioration.
Polymorph should never be heated above the 60°C-65°C temperature range as it will not only
become a sticky treacle-like mass but may cause burns if handled.
Polymorph is really expensive due to materials and components, i.e., current, collectors,
bipolar plate, noble catalysts, membrane.

Shape memory alloys:

Advantages:
Shape memory alloys are mostly all really expensive and have poor fatigue properties.
Shape memory alloys also has complex motion control and they also have low operational
speed with a complex thermo-mechanical behaviour.
They also have low energy efficiency with a temperature dependant effect.
Smart materials: