Research advances in thermo-electro-chemo-mechanical coupling problem for intelligent soft materials

This paper presents an overview of research on multi-field coupled mechanics for typical intelligent soft materials, including polymer gels, hydrogels biological soft tissues and so on. Attention is paid to the foundamental theory and research methods of thermo-electro-chemo-mechanical coupling behavior for such materials. The typical progresses on this issue in research groups over the world are reviewed. Based on phenomenological thermodynamics theory and Hamilton principle, a general theory framework on thermo-electro-chemo-mechanical coupling problem is established. The finite element formulation and one-dimesional analytical solution of the chemo-mechanical coupled systems are obtained. Several numerical examples are used to illustrate the multi-field coulped behavior of hydrogels and articular cartilages. Finally, the research topics and trends in future on the multi-field coupling for intelligent soft materials are discussed.