Soft, stretchable, high power density electronic skin-based biofuel cells for scavenging energy from human sweat

• Published in: Energy & environmental science Vol. 10; no. 7; pp. 1581 - 1589
• Main Authors: Bandodkar, Amay J., You, Jung-Min, Kim, Nam-Heon, Gu, Yue, Kumar, Rajan, Mohan, A. M. Vinu, Kurniawan, Jonas, Imani, Somayeh, Nakagawa, Tatsuo, Parish, Brianna, Parthasarathy, Mukunth, Mercier, Patrick P., Xu, Sheng, Wang, Joseph
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 2017
• ISSN: 1754-5692; 1754-5706
• DOI: 10.1039/C7EE00865A

This article describes the fabrication, characterization, and real-life application of a soft, stretchable electronic-skin-based biofuel cell (E-BFC) that exhibits an open circuit voltage of 0.5 V and a power density of nearly 1.2 mW cm −2 at 0.2 V, representing the highest power density recorded by a wearable biofuel cell to date. High power density is achieved via a unique combination of lithographically-patterned stretchable electronic framework together with screen-printed, densely-packed three-dimensional carbon-nanotube-based bioanode and cathode array arranged in a stretchable “island-bridge” configuration. The E-BFC maintains its performance even under repeated strains of 50%, and is stable for two days. When applied directly to the skin of human subjects, the E-BFC generates ∼1 mW during exercise. The E-BFC is able to power conventional electronic devices, such as a light emitting diode and a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) radio. This is the first example of powering a BLE radio by a wearable biofuel cell. Successful generation of high power density under practical conditions and powering of conventional energy-intense electronic devices represents a major step forward in the field of soft, stretchable, wearable energy harvesting devices.