Fabrication and characterization of PU/NKLNT/CFs based lead-free piezoelectric composite for energy harvesting application

Abstract : For vibration energy harvesting applications, a flexible composite material based on a polyurethane (PU) polymer matrix filled with polycrystalline particles (Na0.535K0.48)0.966 Li0.058 Nb0.9Ta0.1O3 (NKLNT) and crushed carbon fibers (CFs) has been developed by tape-casting method. NKLNT was synthesized by the solid-state route. The powder mixture of NKLNT and CFs was dispersed in the solution obtained by dissolving polyurethane in Cyclohexane. A maximum electrical power has been obtained for 0.5 wt.% at an electrical resistance of 5.105 Ω, which allows us to supply low-power electronic systems. A high piezoelectric charge coefficient (d33 = 147pC.N−1) of NKLNT indicates its potential application in flexible energy harvesting.