Multifunctional origami-structured triboelectric nanogenerators based on zinc coordination polymers for self-powered photoinduced oxidation systems toward green energy harvesting

Abstract

Development of multifunctional triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) capable of efficiently harvesting diverse low-frequency mechanical energies for self-powered systems remains a significant challenge. To address this issue, we designed and fabricated a zigzag-origami-structured TENG based on composite films by integrating a zinc coordination polymer (Zn-CP) with ethylcellulose (EC), aiming to convert human-motion and water-wave energies into electricity to drive a self-powered photo-induced oxidation system. A series of flexible Zn-CP@EC composite films with varying Zn-CP contents were prepared, among which the 10% Zn-CP@EC composite film exhibited the best triboelectric performance. By scaling the film dimensions and integrating multiple origami-structured 10% Zn-CP@EC-TENGs (Z-TENGs), the output performance was further enhanced, with the six-unit device (Z-6) showing the best performance under palm pressure. The Z-6 device, encapsulated in a plastic enclosure, was deployed in an oscillating water tank to harvest wave energy, which successfully powered LEDs as light sources for the photo-induced oxidation of aldehydes to carboxylic acids with high selectivity and efficiency. This work demonstrates that CP-based composite films can serve as effective triboelectric materials for scalable TENGs, enabling the realization of self-powered photochemical systems driven by diverse environmental mechanical energies.

Keywords

Coordination polymers / composite film / multifunctional origami-structure / photoinduced system / triboelectric nanogenerators

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