Solvent-Resistant Wearable Triboelectric Nanogenerator for Energy-Harvesting and Self-Powered Sensors

Abstract

Wearable triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) have attracted attention owing to their ability to harvest energy from the surrounding environment without maintenance. Herein, polyetherimide–Al₂O₃ (PAl) and polyvinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene (PVDF-HFP, PH) nanofiber membranes were used as tribo-positive and tribo-negative materials, respectively. Phytic acid-doped polyaniline (PANI)/cotton fabric (PPCF) and ethylenediamine (EDA)-crosslinked PAl (EPAl) nanofiber membranes were used as triboelectrode and triboencapsulation materials, respectively. The result showed that when the PAl–PH-based TENG was shaped as a circle with a radius of 1 cm, under the pressure of 50 N, and the frequency of 0.5 Hz, the open-circuit voltage (V_oc) and short-circuit current (I_sc) reached the highest value of 66.6 V and −93.4 to 110.1 nA, respectively. Moreover, the PH-based TENG could be used as a fabric sensor to detect fabric composition and as a sensor-inductive switch for light bulbs or beeping warning devices. When the PAl–PH-based TENG was shaped as a 5 × 5 cm² rectangle, a 33 μF capacitor could be charged to 15 V in 28 s. Interestingly, compared to PAl nanofiber membranes, EPAl nanofiber membranes exhibited good dyeing properties and excellent solvent resistance. The PPCF exhibited <5% resistance change after washing, bending, and stretching.