3D printing of poly(vinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene): A poling-free technique to manufacture flexible and transparent piezoelectric generators

Nick A. Shepelin, Vanessa C. Lussini, Phillip J. Fox, Greg W. Dicinoski, Alexey M. Glushenkov, Joseph G. Shapter, Amanda V. Ellis*

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    36 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    Flexible piezoelectric generators (PEGs) present a unique opportunity for renewable and sustainable energy harvesting. Here, we present a lowerature and low-energy deposition method using solvent evaporation-assisted three-dimensional printing to deposit electroactive poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF)-trifluoroethylene (TrFE) up to 19 structured layers. Visible-wavelength transmittance was above 92%, while ATR-FTIR spectroscopy showed little change in the electroactive phase fraction between layer depositions. Electroactivity from the fabricated PVDF-TrFE PEGs showed that a single structured layer gave the greatest output at 289.3 mV peak-to-peak voltage. This was proposed to be due to shear-induced polarization affording the alignment of the fluoropolymer dipoles without an electric field or high temperature.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)159-164
    Number of pages6
    JournalMRS Communications
    Volume9
    Issue number1
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 1 Mar 2019

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