Fabricating nylon/multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) nanocomposites for potential use in triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs)
Orkhan Gulahmadov, Lаla Gahramanli, Mustafa Muradov, Nahida Musayeva, Jadranka Blazevska‐Gilev, Stefano Bellucci
Abstract
This study investigated the enhancement of output parameters in TENGs by incorporating functionalized multi-walled carbon nanotubes (f-MWCNTs) on the surface of nylon. Nylon/f-MWCNTs nanocomposite were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) methods. The time-dependent variations in voltage and electric current of TENGs were analyzed using nanocomposite materials. The results show a significant increase in the TENGs’ performance by adding MWCNTs in nanocomposite materials. The output voltage of the ordinary nylon-based TENGs was measured as 25.5 V, which increased to 32 V after five sprays of MWCNTs, reaching 40 V after 25 sprays of CNTs. The electric current exhibited a similar trend, rising from 2.3 μA to 4.4 μA. However, beyond 15 sprays, further increases resulted in minimal enhancements and a slight decline at 25 sprays. The findings highlight the potential of MWCNTs to significantly boost TENG performance by optimizing dielectric properties and suggest that precise control of MWCNT concentration is crucial to maximizing output parameters. This research offers important perspectives on developing and enhancing nanocomposite-based TENGs to boost energy harvesting performance.