Zinc oxide bridges the nanofillers to enhance the wear resistance and stability of triboelectric nanogenerators

Abstract

Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) have received widespread attention as a means of harvesting mechanical energy from the environment and converting it into electricity. As people continue to explore the field of infinite sensors, traditional TENGs have faced persistent challenges in practical application, mainly due to the poor abrasion resistance and stability of the existing polymers commonly used. Herein, the polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) was melt blended with liquid crystal polymer (LCP) to be used as matrix, and the interfacial bonding strength between the matrix and filler was improved by zinc oxide (ZnO) grafted carbon nanotubes/graphene oxide (CNTs/GO). Under friction conditions of 100 N load and 0.5 m/s, the friction coefficient and wear rate of resultant nanocomposites were significantly reduced to 0.2 and 2.09 × 10-5 mm3/N, respectively. The abrasion resistant TENG (AR-TENG) was fabricated based on 0.3ZnO/CNTs/GO/LCP/PPS exhibited outstanding electrical output performance, which was attributed to the high dielectric constant of 5.3, improved surface roughness and interfacial contact area of composites. Consequently, this study reported a novel approach to tailor AR-TENG into a highly abrasion resistant and stable sensor. This customization enabled the AR-TENG to operate reliably in harsh environments (high temperatures and humidity), thereby expanding its potential applications.