A Fiber Fluidic Nanogenerator Made from Aligned Carbon Nanotubes Composited with Transition Metal Oxide

Harvesting electricity from water has been recognized as an effective way to deal with the increasing energy shortage. The nanogenerators made from carbon nanomaterials have been widely studied to harvest energy from various forms of water. However, its electric generation is usually not sufficient for practical applications. Here, we develop a flexible fiber fluidic nanogenerator based on aligned carbon nanotube/transition metal oxide composite film. An open-circuit voltage of 0.31 V combined with an output power of 30 mW/m2 had been produced when the fluidic nanogenerator was inserted into saline solution. The output power is superior to the majority of previous hydroelectric generators based on carbon nanomaterials. A stable output voltage of 1.8 V could be further achieved by connecting fiber generators in series. The enhanced electricity generation after introduction of transition metal oxides is attributed to the intensified charge unbalance at the interfacial electric double layer between the carbon nanotube and aqueous solution, which provides a new way for creating high-performing hydroelectric generators.