Multifunctional composite nanofibers with shape memory and piezoelectric properties for energy harvesting

Although many kinds of flexible piezoelectric materials have been developed, there were few reports on flexible multifunctional nanofibers for energy harvesting. In this study, we prepared multifunctional nanofibers from lead zirconate titanate particles and shape memory polyurethane by electrospinning. The resulting nanofibers had both piezoelectric and shape memory effects. To improve the dispersion, lead zirconate titanate particles were modified by silane coupling agents. The lead zirconate titanate/shape memory polyurethane nanofibers were used to harvest energy from sinusoidal vibrations, and the lead zirconate titanate 80 wt% sample produced voltages of 120.3 mV (peak-to-peak). Taking advantage of the shape memory effect, the lead zirconate titanate/shape memory polyurethane nanofibers can be easily deformed into desired shapes and revealed the potential for realizing energy harvesting in complex structures.