Paper-based triboelectric nanogenerators and their application in self-powered anticorrosion and antifouling

Yange Feng, Youbin Zheng, Zia Ur Rahman, Daoai Wang, Feng Zhou, Weimin Liu

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

94 Scopus citations

Abstract

As a smart and new energy harvesting device, triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) are able to convert almost all mechanical energies into electricity. However, the complex preparation process requires coating with a conductive layer, which limits their practical applications. Herein, a new type of triboelectric nanogenerator is fabricated using gum wrappers coated with aluminium foil as the conduction layer. To further enhance the output of the paper-based TENG, polydopamine molecules are introduced to improve the surface polarity of the friction layer by a simple self-polymerization reaction at room temperature. After chemical modification, the short-circuit current and output voltage are enhanced by more than 3.5 times with maximum values of 30 μA and 1000 V, respectively. The charge density increases from 21 μC m−2 to 76 μC m−2, which can light up 496 commercial LEDs. Based on the above TENGs, a self-powered cathodic protection anticorrosion system is designed to protect A3 steel from corrosion in 3.5% NaCl solution. Furthermore, the TENG powered cathodic protection system also has good antifouling properties, which can prevent algae from attaching onto metallic substrates. This work demonstrates a recyclable, cost-effective paper-based TENG, which has great potential for practical use in marine anticorrosion and antifouling.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)18022-18030
Number of pages9
JournalJournal of Materials Chemistry A
Volume4
Issue number46
DOIs
StatePublished - 2016
Externally publishedYes

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