Electrospun Silver-Modified PZT/PVDF Composites for High-Performance Piezoelectric Energy Harvester

Piezoelectric materials based on polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) are widely regarded as ideal candidates for the fabrication of piezoelectric energy harvesters (PEHs). However, the relatively low power output of PVDF limits its widespread application and poses a significant challenge to the advancement of PEHs. To address this issue, we have designed a novel PEH using silver-modified lead zirconate titanate/PVDF (pPZT@Ag/PVDF), which achieves a remarkable balance between high output performance and long-term stability. The pPZT@60Ag/PVDF PEH generates a peak voltage of 14.33 V, which is about 2.6 times that of the pure lead zirconate titanate/PVDF (pPZT/PVDF) PEH. This enhancement is attributed to the confined structure within the PVDF fibers, as well as the enhancement in dipole orientation alignment and the local electric field induced by silver nanoparticle modification. Furthermore, the pPZT@60Ag/PVDF PEH demonstrates a peak power density of 0.58 μW/cm², with negligible degradation in output voltage after 6000 bending cycles, and efficiently harvests mechanical energy from human movement. This study presents an effective method for fabricating high-performance PEHs, which is expected to advance the development of next-generation energy harvesting devices.