Hybrid Textile Nanogenerators Based on Cotton-PANI/CNT Composites for Simultaneous Harvesting of Mechanical and Thermal Energy
Suchanat Navatragulpisit, Chanachot Saetang, Phitchayaphorn Mohsom, Saichon Sriphan, Phakkhananan Pakawanit, Sugato Hajra, Hoe Joon Kim, Sirinya Ukasi, Naratip Vittayakorn, Thitirat Charoonsuk
Abstract
Rapid advancements in wearable electronics (WEs) have accelerated the development of textile-based triboelectric nanogenerators (T-TENGs) as flexible and sustainable power sources. However, one major challenge lies in mitigating the charge loss due to heat generation during repeated mechanical operations. In this work, we demonstrate a hybrid energy-harvesting textile that integrates both triboelectric and thermoelectric functionalities. Cotton (cot-) fabric serves as the triboelectric substrate, coated with a polyaniline/carbon nanotube (PANI/CNT) thermoelectric composite, enabling the simultaneous harvesting of mechanical and thermal energy. The optimized cot-PANI/CNT device exhibits a high Seebeck coefficient (98.5 mV/K), a power factor of ∼9 μW/mK 2, and improved electrical conductivity, while maintaining fabric flexibility. The hybrid system achieves an open-circuit voltage ( V OC ) of ∼40.0 V and a short-circuit current ( I SC ) of ∼77.3 μA, yielding a maximum output power of ∼272.3 μW (30.3 μW/cm 2 ). The device successfully powers wearable-scale electronics, and mechanistic insights are provided into the synergistic charge generation pathways between the triboelectric and thermoelectric components.