Motion Powered 3D Printed Self-Healable Energy Storage for Wearable Electronics utilizing Plastic Waste

Project Information

MotionESt

Grant agreement ID: 894457

DOI

10.3030/894457

Project closed

EC signature date 5 May 2020

Start date 1 July 2020

End date 30 June 2022

Funded under

• EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions

Total cost

€ 144 980,64

EU contribution

€ 144 980,64

Coordinated by

VYSOKE UCENI TECHNICKE V BRNE
Czechia

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - MotionESt (Motion Powered 3D Printed Self-Healable Energy Storage for Wearable Electronics utilizing Plastic Waste)

Reporting period: 2020-07-01 to 2022-06-30

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

Countries around the globe collectively target ‘net zero-carbon emissions by 2050’. The production of green hydrogen has been considered a pure source of energy without greenhouse gas emissions. So far, the production of green hydrogen is limited to on-shore and off-shore wind turbines and solar panels which are mostly location-specific, and hours of daylight and weather dependent. In this project, we have addressed the generation of green hydrogen from small-scale kinetic energy such as biomechanical actions. Besides, the researcher has demonstrated the fabrication of electro(photo)catalytically active filament using 2D nanomaterials, conductive carbons, and thermoplastic polymer polylactic acid. The 3D printed electro(photo) catalytically active electrodes were used for supercapacitor and water splitting to produce hydrogen using the wide wavelength of the solar spectrum. In brief, the overall objectives of the project were to develop 3D-printed energy storage devices and conversion of low-scale kinetic energy around us to electrical energy followed by green hydrogen production. This whole project brings a novel direction toward the target of the ‘net zero carbon emission’ policy by the EU government through the conversion of waste to wealth.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

At the beginning of the project, the researcher developed free-standing 3D printed supercapacitors for energy storage applications. The researcher first modified a nanocarbon-based 3D-printed electrode through electrodeposition of MoSx on the printed electrode’s surface. This study shows the integration of 3D-printing and electrodeposition techniques for facile and scalable fabrication of freestanding electrodes for SC applications.
The researcher extended the work to develop 3D-printed asymmetric supercapacitors to obtain higher energy density. Asymmetric supercapacitors (ASCs) were fabricated by assembling the exfoliated Ti3C2Tx (Ex-Ti3C2Tx) as the negative electrode and transition metal chalcogenide (MoS3−x) coated 3D-printed nanocarbon framework (MoS3−x@3DnCF) as the positive electrode utilizing polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)/H2SO4 gel electrolyte, which provides a wide ΔV of 1.6 V. The customized ASCs provided excellent capacitive performance.
Journal publication
Kalyan Ghosh, and Martin Pumera, Nanoscale 2021,13, 5744-5756. DOI: 10.1039/D0NR06479C
Kalyan Ghosh, and Martin Pumera, Small Methods 2021, 5, 2100451. DOI: 10.1002/smtd.202100451

The researcher further extended the work to fabricate customized filament utilizing the MoS2 as electroactive material, carbon materials as conductive fillers, and a base polymer polylactic acid (PLA). PLA is an extensively used polymer for FDM printing. With the blooming of FDM printing, failed printed parts are often discarded and thus a lot of PLA polymer waste is increasing nowadays. To make valuable use of waste PLA polymer, it can be reused for making filaments modified with 2D materials and conductive carbon for useful electrochemical applications. The researcher used commercial PLA as a reference instead of waste PLA-printed objects. Nevertheless, the waste PLA-printed objects can be shredded into smaller PLA particles. This study creates a profound impact on filament fabrication for FDM 3D printing because it shows the potential to reveal the other 2D nanomaterials-based filament for several electrochemical applications in the future through tailoring the composition of active materials.

Journal publication
Kalyan Ghosh, Siowwoon Ng, Christian Iffelsberger, and Martin Pumera, Applied Materials Today 2022, 26, 101301. DOI:10.1016/j.apmt.2021.101301

Considering the vast demand for energy, and zero carbon emission, the researcher explored the energy conversion area to find out the alternate material for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) that could replace expensive Pt. He has shown facile incorporation of the electrocatalytically active 2D nanomaterials (MoS2 and VSx) on the large-scale graphite film to enhance its electrochemical performance. The VSx/graphite film functions as a photo-electrocatalyst for enhanced hydrogen evolution reaction by visible and near-infrared light irradiation. The flexible VSx/graphite film with near-infrared photoresponse can be directed to outer space applications, such as absorbing infrared irradiation on Mars.

Journal publication
Cameron Jellett,*, Kalyan Ghosh*, Michelle P. Browne, Veronika Urbanová, and Martin Pumera, ACS Applied Energy Materials 2021, 4, 6975−6981. *equivalent contribution, DOI:10.1021/acsaem.1c01047
Siowwoon Ng, Kalyan Ghosh, Jan Vyskocil, and Martin Pumera, Chemical Engineering Journal, 2022, 135131. DOI:10.1016/j.cej.2022.135131

Conference-Oral presentation
Kalyan Ghosh, and Martin Pumera, 3D-printing of electrochemically active filament for energy conversion and storage, World Conference on Materials Science and Nanotechnology on 01- 03 July 2022, Munich, Germany.

To aim for green hydrogen production targeting the ‘net zero carbon emission’ goal, the researcher has developed a contact-separation mode TENG (CS-TENG) to convert the ambient mechanical energy to chemical energy. The CS-TENG can harvest energy from even simple mechanical actions such as human hand clapping and walking. The energy generated from hand clapping mode was applied for water electrolysis to evolve hydrogen and oxygen. Such hydrogen production can be called green hydrogen as it is produced by using renewable mechanical energy. This shows a new path of generating green hydrogen anywhere, anytime around us using abundant mechanical energy.
Poster presentation
Kalyan Ghosh, Christian Iffelsberger and Martin Pumera, Magnetic COF and PDMS/MXene based Triboelectric nanogenerator, CzechNanoLab User Meeting, May 12, 2022. Ref.: CzechNanoLab User Meeting - May 12, 2022 – Research Infrastructure (ceitec.cz).

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

The fabrication of a 3D-printed supercapacitor opens the way for developing energy storage with any complex shape without the requirement of a conventional industrial process line. Such a table-top fabrication process of energy storage will be less expensive that can be used to power up electronic devices. Further, the fabrication of large-scale electrochemically active flexible film for energy conversion through the generation of hydrogen shows the path of economical hydrogen production. As hydrogen is predicted to be the fuel for the future, the large-scale fabrication of electro(photo)catalytically active VSx/graphite film with near-infrared photoresponse and pseudocapacitive properties, is an economically feasible avenue for energy harvesting, outer space application, and wearable energy storage devices. Besides, the use of a triboelectric nanogenerator to produce green hydrogen demonstrates another possible route for harvesting green energy. So far, the use of triboelectric nanogenerators were limited mostly to self-powered electronics, sensors, and the internet of things (IoTs). However, this project shows that triboelectric nanogenerators can generate green hydrogen anywhere, anytime, and free using low-scale mechanical energy. This project will create an enormous environmental and economic impacts on the world bringing us to fulfill the target of the “Net Zero Carbon Emission policy by 2050”.

The image describes an overview of the projects carried out under MSCA-IF program.