Flexible
piezoresistive sensors with high sensitivity, low cost,
and wide response ranges are urgently required due to the rapid development
of wearable electronics. Here, carbon nanotubes (CNTs)/graphene/waterborne
polyurethane (WPU)/cellulose nanocrystal (CNC) composite aerogels
(CNTs/graphene/WC) were fabricated by facile solution mixing and freeze-drying
technology for high-performance pressure sensors. WPU and CNC were
constructed as a 3D structure skeleton, and the synergistic effect
of CNTs and graphene was beneficial to enhancing the sensing performance.
The obtained pressure sensor exhibits a highly porous network structure,
remarkable mechanical properties (76.16 kPa), high sensitivity (0.25
kPa–1), an ultralow detection limit (0.112 kPa),
and high stability (>800 cycles). More importantly, the piezoresistive
sensor could be successfully used to detect various human motions
such as finger bending, squatting–rising, walking, and running
and effectively extract real-time information by the electrical signals.
In addition, the CNTs/graphene/WC composite aerogel exhibits excellent
thermal insulation performance, which can withstand 160 °C for
a long time without any damage to the structure. The CNTs/graphene/WC
composite aerogel, because of its thermal insulation property, endows
the sensor with the potential for application in high-temperature
environments. The results indicate that CNTs/graphene/WC composite
aerogels possess high sensing performance and outstanding thermal
insulation, which means that the aerogels could be used as flexible,
wearable electronics.
Zn and Co oxides possess high theoretical capacity; however, their application in the field of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) is greatly limited because of poor conductivity and large volume fluctuation. Herein, the multi-protuberant nanofiber structure was formed by combining two-dimensional (2D) Ti 3 C 2 nanosheets and zero-dimensional (0D) ZnCo 2 O 4 nanoparticles on the surface and inside one-dimensional (1D) carbon nanofibers (Ti 3 C 2 @ZnCo 2 O 4 @carbon nanofibers) for lithium-ion storage. The Ti 3 C 2 @ZnCo 2 O 4 @carbon nanofiber composite prepared by electrospinning, annealing, and oxidation at low temperature provides abundant active sites and an efficient conductive network to enhance the storage capacity and transfer rate of lithium ions. The Ti 3 C 2 @ZnCo 2 O 4 @carbon nanofiber anode provides high reversible specific capacity (1112.51 mA h g −1 at 0.2 A g −1 ), outstanding cycle stability (603.796 mA h g −1 at 0.5 A g −1 after 300 cycles), and excellent rate performance (455.05 mA h g −1 at 3 A g −1 and maintains 920.17 mA h g −1 when current is restored to 0.1 A g −1 ). The remarkable Li storage originates from the stable multiprotuberant nanofiber structure and fast electrochemical kinetics. The unique structure design of Ti 3 C 2 @ZnCo 2 O 4 @carbon nanofibers also provides an effective strategy for other electrochemical fields.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.