Single BaTiO3 nanowires-polymer fiber based nanogenerator

A super flexible nanogenerator based on BaTiO3 nanowires- polyvinyl chloride(PVC) composite single fiber was reported. The fabricating process of the nanogenerator consists of three main steps. In the first step, the < 001 > oriented BaTiO3 nanowires are prepared by topochemical synthesis. Secondly, the BaTiO3 nanowires-polymer composite fibers were fabricated by spinning method, and the BaTiO3 nanowires with high aspect ratio were assembled into PVC matrix to form composite fibers. The shearing stress during the spinning process make the BaTiO3 nanowires uniformly align along the fiber. Finally, BaTiO3 nanowire-polymer composite fibers were transferred onto a receiving substrate which has been covered with interdigital electrodes previously by ink-printing. The single highly <001> oriented BaTiO3 nanowire-polymer fiber based nanogenerator (SFBNG) demonstrated an output voltage up to 0.9 V and an output current up to 10.5 nA when the nanogenerator was fixed on human finger and the finger was bended. This research opens up the path for improve the robustness and output performance of wearable, especially textile nanogeneragtors. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.