• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.72-79
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• 2022

Piezoelectric energy harvesting technologies, which can be used to convert the electricity from the mechanical energy, have been developed in order to assist or power the wearable electronics. To realize non-toxic and biocompatible electronics, the lead-free (Ba_0.85Ca_0.15)(Ti_0.90Zr_0.10)O₃ (BCTZ) nanoparticles (NPs) are being studied with a great attention as flexible energy harvesting device. Herein, piezoelectric hybrid nanocomposites were fabricated using BCTZ NPs-embedded poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene) [P(VDF-TrFE)] matrix to improve the performance of flexible energy harvester. Output performance of the fabricated energy device was investigated by the well-optimized measurement system during the periodically bending and releasing motions. The generated open-circuit voltage and the short-circuit current of the piezoelectric hybrid nanocomposite-based energy harvester reached up to ~15 V and ~1.1 ㎂, respectively; moreover, the instantaneous power of 3.5 ㎼ is determined from load voltage and current at the external load of 20 MΩ. This research is expected to cultivate a new approach to high-performance wearable self-powering electronics.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.32 no.11
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• pp.508-514
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• 2022

Piezoelectric composite films which are enabled by inorganic piezoelectric nanomaterials-embedded polymer, have attracted enormous attention as a sustainable power source for low powered electronics, because of their ease of fabrication and flexible nature. However, the absorption of applied stress by the soft polymeric matrices is a major issue that must be solved to expand the fields of piezoelectric composite applications. Herein, a flexible and porous piezoelectric composite (piezoelectric sponge) comprised of BaTiO₃ nanoparticles and polydimethylsiloxane was developed using template method to enhance the energy conversion efficiency by minimizing the stress that vanishes into the polymer matrix. In the porous structure, effective stress transfer can occur between the piezoelectric active materials in compression mode due to direct contact between the ceramic particles embedded in the pore-polymer interface. The piezoelectric sponge with 30 wt% of BaTiO₃ particles generated an open-circuit voltage of ~12 V and a short-circuit current of ~150 nA. A finite element method-based simulation was conducted to theoretically back up that the piezoelectric output performance was effectively improved by introducing the sponge structure. Furthermore, to demonstrate the feasibility of pressure detecting applications using the BaTiO₃ particles-embedded piezoelectric sponge, the composite was arranged in a 3 × 3 array and integrated into a single pressure sensor. The fabricated sensor array successfully detected the shape of the applied pressure. This work can provide a cost-effective, biocompatible, and structural strategy for realizing piezoelectric composite-based energy harvesters and self-powered sensors with improved energy conversion efficiency.