Cellular Polyolefin Composites as Piezoelectric Materials: Properties and Applications

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Polymer Science
• Electrical Engineering

Background:

• Flexible piezoelectric polymers are crucial for advanced applications in electronics, medicine, and telecommunications.
• Developing robust piezoelectric materials with enhanced properties remains a key research area.

Purpose of the Study:

• To create piezoelectric polymer composites with a cellular structure.
• To assess the practical utility of these novel composites.

Main Methods:

• Polyolefin composites (isotactic-polypropylene and polyethylene) with aluminosilicate fillers were fabricated via extrusion.
• Materials were polarized using a constant electric field of 100 V/µm.
• Piezoelectric properties and energy generation were evaluated.

Main Results:

• Adding up to 10 wt% mineral fillers improved electric stability and mechanical strength.
• The piezoelectric coefficient (d33) reached approximately 150 pC/N at lower stresses and 80 pC/N at higher stresses (~120 kPa).
• A single shoe insert generated 1.1 mJ of electrical energy after 300 seconds of walking.

Conclusions:

• The developed piezoelectric polymer composites demonstrate high durability and potential for converting mechanical motion into electrical energy.
• These materials are suitable for applications such as energy harvesting shoe inserts for portable electronics and sensitive transducers for blood pulse measurement.