Flexible piezoelectric energy harvesters with graphene oxide nanosheets and PZT-incorporated P(VDF-TrFE) matrix for mechanical energy harvesting

Abstract Flexible piezoelectric energy harvesters (PEHs) have attracted extensive interest because of their ability to transform mechanical energy into electric power. Here, PEHs were fabricated using P(VDF-TrFE)-based piezoelectric composite films containing lead zirconate titanate (PZT) powder and –OH-functionalized graphene (HOG) nanosheets (HOG-P/P). Among all composites, a high open-circuit voltage (Voc) of approximately 50 Vp-p and a maximum power density of 1.4 μW/cm2 were obtained from a HOG-P/P PEH with 0.10 wt% HOG nanosheets and 15 wt% PZT under bending–releasing mode. Moreover, the PEH exhibited a stable voltage output after 3000 bending–releasing cycles. In addition, the PEH harvested mechanical energy from human body movements and generated an output voltage and current of 60 V and 8 μA during the finger bending–releasing process, lighting up 30 commercial white LEDs. The enhanced piezoelectric performance can be attributed to the introduction of HOG nanosheets and PZT powder. This work provides an effective strategy for improving the output performance of P(VDF-TrFE)-based PEHs.