One-step fabrication of functionalized electrodes on 3D-printed polymers for triboelectric nanogenerators

• Published in: Nano energy 2024-10, Vol.129, p.110082, Article 110082
• Main Authors: Akin, Semih, Chang, Taehoo, Abir, Sk Shamim Hasan, Kim, Young Won, Xu, Shujia, Lim, Jongcheon, Sim, Yuseop, Lee, Jiho, Tsai, Jung-Ting, Nath, Chandra, Lee, Hyowon, Wu, Wenzhuo, Samuel, Johnson, Lee, Chi Hwan, Jun, Martin Byung-Guk
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Additive manufacturing; Cold spray; Polylactic acid; Polymer electrode; Polymer metallization; Rapid prototyping; Triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG)
• ISSN: 2211-2855
• DOI: 10.1016/j.nanoen.2024.110082

Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) have gained remarkable attention in energy harvesting and smart sensing, allowing for converting mechanical energy into electrical energy. Despite great potential and progress made in this field, there remains a high demand for high-performance electrodes that are produced with sustainable, low-cost, lightweight, and durable materials such as polymers. Here, by combining the material extrusion 3D printing and the cold spray particle deposition methods, we employ a complete additive manufacturing (AM) approach to fabricate functionalized electrodes on 3D-printed parts for TENG technology. First, polylactic acid (PLA) parts were produced by material extrusion printing. Next, the cold spray process (CS) was utilized as just a one-step fabrication method of the conductive electrodes on the printed parts, eliminating the need for surface activation, over-plating, curing, and/or post-processing. Additionally, the process-structure-property relationships of the CS process were uncovered to fabricate high-performance electrodes for TENGs. The resulting electrodes demonstrate promising electrical conductivity (9.8 × 104 S.m−1), adhesive strength, stability, and micro-roughness (Ra = 6.32 µm). The TENG with the fabricated electrode generates an open-circuit voltage of 174 V, which is nearly 1.85–2.9-fold higher than that of the control TENGs. It achieves the short-circuit density of ≈ 55 mA/m2, and the power density of 1676 mW/m². Besides, to address the low-spatial resolution of the cold spray metallization, a manufacturing pathway is proposed, aiming to achieve higher line resolution (1 mm linewidth) electrodes for polymer electronics. This work provides a manufacturing strategy that can advance the field of TENG and polymer electronics by addressing the limitations of conventional electrode manufacturing techniques. [Display omitted] •A complete additive manufacturing method was developed for functionalized electrodes.•Direct writing of functional electrodes on 3D-printed parts was achieved for TENGs.•The electrodes exhibit promising conductivity (9.8 × 104 S.m−1), stability, adhesive strength, and micro-roughness Ra = 6.32 μm).•TENG with fabricated electrode demonstrated ≈ 2.9-fold higher energy harvesting performance compared to control TENG.