A MOF-reinforced self-foaming sponge for mechanically robust triboelectric membranes with improved resistance to humidity
Abstract
Porous triboelectric materials offer significant potential for enhancing the performance of triboelectric nanogenerators, yet their practical application is limited by structural instability and humidity-induced performance degradation. In this work, a bio-derived, sustainable polyamide containing disulfide linkages was developed to enable spontaneous formation of a porous dielectric without external templating. Hydrophilic MOF fillers comprising HKUST-1 crystals are incorporated within the porous matrix to reinforce the membrane structure and regulate moisture effects. Mechanical characterization demonstrates that HKUST-1 suppresses pore collapse and improves structural robustness under repeated deformation, while analysis of stress-strain behaviour reveals the critical role of pore stability in achieving stable triboelectric output. In addition, HKUST-1 mitigates humidity-induced charge dissipation by confining water molecules within its framework, giving enhanced triboelectric output stability and reduced performance degradation under increasing relative humidity compared to the neat porous system. This work demonstrates a strategy that integrates self-foamed porous structures, sustainable polymer design, and functional filler reinforcement to engineer mechanically robust and environmentally stable triboelectric systems.
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BibTeX
@misc{xu2026mofreinforced,
title = {{A MOF-reinforced self-foaming sponge for mechanically robust triboelectric membranes with improved resistance to humidity}},
author = {Tianhuai Xu and Pavel Kulyabin and Fatih Uzun and Alejandra Sophia Lozano-Pérez and Ketan Pancholi and Amit Kumar and Jin-Chong Tan},
howpublished = {arXiv},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2608.31019},
eprint = {2608.31019},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2608.31019},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - A MOF-reinforced self-foaming sponge for mechanically robust triboelectric membranes with improved resistance to humidity
AU - Tianhuai Xu
AU - Pavel Kulyabin
AU - Fatih Uzun
AU - Alejandra Sophia Lozano-Pérez
AU - Ketan Pancholi
AU - Amit Kumar
AU - Jin-Chong Tan
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/31
PB - arXiv
DO - 10.48550/arxiv.2608.31019
UR - https://arxiv.org/abs/2608.31019
AB - Porous triboelectric materials offer significant potential for enhancing the performance of triboelectric nanogenerators, yet their practical application is limited by structural instability and humidity-induced performance degradation. In this work, a bio-derived, sustainable polyamide containing disulfide linkages was developed to enable spontaneous formation of a porous dielectric without external templating. Hydrophilic MOF fillers comprising HKUST-1 crystals are incorporated within the porous matrix to reinforce the membrane structure and regulate moisture effects. Mechanical characterization demonstrates that HKUST-1 suppresses pore collapse and improves structural robustness under repeated deformation, while analysis of stress-strain behaviour reveals the critical role of pore stability in achieving stable triboelectric output. In addition, HKUST-1 mitigates humidity-induced charge dissipation by confining water molecules within its framework, giving enhanced triboelectric output stability and reduced performance degradation under increasing relative humidity compared to the neat porous system. This work demonstrates a strategy that integrates self-foamed porous structures, sustainable polymer design, and functional filler reinforcement to engineer mechanically robust and environmentally stable triboelectric systems.
ER -