Functionalized graphene oxide/polyvinylidene fluoride composite membrane acting as a triboelectric layer for hydropower energy harvesting
Duy Linh Vu, Chau Duy Le, Kyoung Kwan Ahn
Abstract
Liquid-solid triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) has received much attention as a promising electricity generation mechanism for renewable energy sources and self-powered electronic devices. Thus, enhancing TENG performance is a critical issue to be concerned for both practical and industrial applications. Hence, in this study, for the first time, the liquid-solid TENG based on functionalized graphene oxide (F-GO) and polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) composite membranes containing various F-GO concentrations were fabricated using the blade coating process. The surface of GO nanosheets was functionalized through covalent graft by using 1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorooctyltriethoxysilane (FOTS). As indicated in FE-SEM images, the miscibility of the F-GO containing fluorine group in PVDF was effectively improved, which was created favorable conditions for PVDF crystallization and β phase configuration. Thus, the dielectric and polarization characteristics of the F-GO/PVDF membranes were greatly improved, eventuating in a rise in the output performance of F-GO/PVDF-based TENG. As a consequence, the F-GO/PVDF TENG generates 0.14 mW of output power from a single water droplet, which is 7 times more than PVDF TENG and 1.8 times higher than GO/PVDF TENG. It is proved the addition of functionalized GO nanosheets in PVDF is very effective for hydropower energy harvesting based on liquid-solid TENG.