Wearable biosensors for real-time sweat analysis and body motion capture based on stretchable fiber-based triboelectric nanogenerators.

Carbon neutrality is a global green energy revolution meaning that the carbon dioxide can make ends meet. However, with the mushroom of the fifth generation wireless systems (5G) and the Internet of Things (IoT), it is a great challenge for powering the ubiquitous distributed devices, because the battery production and high overhead maintenance may bring more carbon emissions. Here, we present wearable biosensors for real-time sweat analysis and body motion capture based on stretchable fiber-based triboelectric nanogenerators (F-TENG). The F-TENG is made of stretchable conductive fiber (Ecoflex coating with polyaniline (PANI)) and varnished wires. Based on the coupling effect of triboelectric effect and enzymatic reaction (surface-triboelectric coupling effect), the wearable biosensors can not only precisely sense the motion states, but also detect glucose, creatinine and lactate acid in sweat in real-time. Importantly, the wearable devices can self-drive without any external power source and the response against glucose, creatinine and lactate acid can be up to 103%, 125% and 38%, respectively. On this basis, applications in biosensing and wireless communication have been demonstrated. This work exhibits a prospective potential application of F-TENG in IoT for diverse use.

Sea Urchin-like Si@MnO2@rGO as Anodes for High-Performance Lithium-Ion Batteries.

Si is a promising material for applications as a high-capacity anode material of lithium-ion batteries. However, volume expansion, poor electrical conductivity, and a short cycle life during the charging/discharging process limit the commercial use. In this paper, new ternary composites of sea urchin-like Si@MnO2@reduced graphene oxide (rGO) prepared by a simple, low-cost chemical method are presented. These can effectively reduce the volume change of Si, extend the cycle life, and increase the lithium-ion battery capacity due to the dual protection of MnO2 and rGO. The sea urchin-like Si@MnO2@rGO anode shows a discharge specific capacity of 1282.72 mAh g-1 under a test current of 1 A g-1 after 1000 cycles and excellent chemical performance at different current densities. Moreover, the volume expansion of sea urchin-like Si@MnO2@rGO anode material is ~50% after 150 cycles, which is much less than the volume expansion of Si (300%). This anode material is economical and environmentally friendly and this work made efforts to develop efficient methods to store clean energy and achieve carbon neutrality.

Self-Powered Biosensor for Specifically Detecting Creatinine in Real Time Based on the Piezo-Enzymatic-Reaction Effect of Enzyme-Modified ZnO Nanowires.

Creatinine has become an important indicator for the early detection of uremia. However, due to the disadvantages of external power supply and large volume, some commercial devices for detecting creatinine concentration have lost a lot of popularity in everyday life. This paper describes the development of a self-powered biosensor for detecting creatinine in sweat. The biosensor can detect human creatinine levels in real time without the need for an external power source, providing information about the body's overall health. The piezoelectric output voltage of creatininase/creatinase/sarcosine oxidase-modified ZnO nanowires (NWs) is significantly dependent on the creatinine concentration due to the coupling effect of the piezoelectric effect and enzymatic reaction (piezo-enzymatic-reaction effect), which can be regarded as both electrical energy and biosensing signal. Our results can be used for the detection of creatinine levels in the human body and have great potential in the prediction of related diseases.