The State of the Art of Energy Harvesting and Storage in Silk Fibroin-Based Wearable and Implantable Devices

Abstract

The energy autonomy of self-powered wearable electronics depends on the adequate development of new technologies for energy harvesting and energy storage devices based on textile fibers to facilitate the integration with truly flexible and wearable devices. Silk fiber-based systems are attractive for the design of biomedical devices, lithium-ion batteries and flexible supercapacitors, due to their nitrogen-rich structure (for preparation of hierarchical carbon-based structures), and available surface for chemical modification reinforcing electroactive properties for use in batteries and supercapacitors. Herein, this paper reviews recent advances on silk fiber-based systems for harvesting and the storage of energy and the corresponding strategies to reinforce the physical and chemical properties of the resulting composites applied as electrodes and battery separators.