Effect of CN9021 crosslinker content on mechanical and actuation properties of acrylic dielectric elastomers and their constitutive modeling

Dielectric elastomers (DEs) are promising electroactive polymers with large strain capability ( > 100%) and high energy density, but commercial VHB materials require substantial pre-stretching (300%–500%) and exhibit high viscoelastic losses. This study systematically investigates CN9021 crosslinker content (30-100 wt%) effects on acrylate-based DE materials through UV photopolymerization. Crosslinking density was tuned from 1.42 × 10 −5 to 5.12 × 10 −5 mol/cm, enabling a 7.4-fold tuning of Young’s modulus (from 0.05 to 0.37 MPa). UB55 exhibited significantly lower energy dissipation (9.69%) compared to VHB4910 (29.82%). The third-order Ogden model accurately describes mechanical behavior (R 2 > 0 . 9999 ). All materials demonstrated superior dielectric constants (5.8-6.4) versus VHB4910 (4.7). Medium crosslinking density UB55 achieved 198% area strain at 57.7 kV/mm under pre-stretch, while high crosslinking density UB82 enabled 15.6% strain at 21.7 kV/mm without pre-stretching. UB55 demonstrated excellent long-term stability with approximately 12% dynamic amplitude maintained over 10,000 cycles. Both materials maintained a dynamic amplitude approximately 5 times higher than VHB4910 at 30 Hz. This work establishes a systematic design strategy for tailoring DE performance to meet diverse operational requirements. • Systematic crosslinking control: CN9021 content (30-100 wt%) achieves 7.4-fold modulus tuning (0.05-0.37 MPa) for diverse applications. • Dual-mode optimization: UB55 delivers 198% pre-stretched strain; UB82 enables 15.6% non-pre-stretched actuation. • Superior performance: Energy dissipation of 6.15-9.69% vs. VHB4910’s 29.82%, 5× dynamic amplitude at 30 Hz, and 10,000-cycle stability.