Modulus-Modulated All-Organic Core–Shell Nanofiber with Remarkable Piezoelectricity for Energy Harvesting and Condition Monitoring

Abstract

The low piezoelectricity of piezoelectric polymers significantly restricts their applications. Introducing inorganic fillers can slightly improve the piezoelectricity of polymers, whereas it is usually at the cost of flexibility and durability. In this work, using a modulus-modulated core–shell structure strategy, all-organic nanofibers with remarkable piezoelectricity were designed and prepared by a coaxial electrospinning method. It was surprisingly found that the introduction of a nonpiezoelectric polymeric core (e.g., polycarbonate, PC) can result in 110% piezoelectric coefficient (d₃₃) enhancement in a poly(vinylidenefluoride-co-trifluoroethylene) (PVDF-TrFE) nanofiber. Accordingly, the all-organic [email?protected] core–shell nanofiber exhibits record-high energy-harvesting performance (i.e., 126 V output voltage, 710 mW m^–2 power density) among the reported organic piezoelectric materials. In addition, the excellent sensing capability of the core–shell nanofiber enabled us to develop a wireless vibration monitoring and analyzing system, which realizes the real-time vibration detection of a power transformer.