Rain Energy Harvesting Using Atomically Thin Gadolinium Telluride Decorated 3D Printed Nanogenerator

Abstract The 3D printing (3DP) technology offers an innovative approach to developing energy storage devices to create facile and low‐cost customized electrodes for modern electronics. Generating electric potential by moving a droplet of ionic solution over 2D materials is a novel method for rain energy harvesting. This work demonstrates a liquid‐solid contact electrification‐based 3DP nanogenerator where raindrop passes through the positively charged ultrathin gadolinium telluride (Gd₂Te₃) sheets. The output efficiency of the nanogenerator is increased to ≈400% by enhancing the surface area of copious 3D‐printed porous structures. The density functional theory (DFT) calculations reveal that the high electrical conductivity of (112) surface of Gd₂Te₃ is due to the p‐type charge carriers, which help to generate electricity by interacting with the ionic solution. This work can open up a new avenue to advance scientific research on blue energy harvesting and tackle the energy crisis.