The ternary nanocomposite g-C3N4/TiO2@polyaniline embedded in PVDF based triboelectric nanogenerator for energy harvesting

We report a materials-engineering strategy to enhance triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) output by embedding a ternary g-C₃N₄/TiO₂@polyaniline (GTP) nanocomposite into PVDF tribopositive electrodes and pairing them with PTFE tribonegative layers of systematically varied composition from 30 to 60 wt%). XPS, TEM, FESEM/EDX, UV–Vis, and DSC confirm that TiO₂ nanoparticles are well distributed on g-C₃N₄ nanosheets and interconnected through a conducting PANI network, with evidence of interfacial Ti–O–C/Ti–N bonding, Ti 3 ⁺ associated defect states, and band-tail absorption (Urbach energy, E U = 0.31 eV), indicating localized electronic states that support charge storage/transfer.” In vertical contact–separation mode, the devices exhibit a composition-dependent trade-off: the 30 wt% PTFE configuration delivers the highest short-circuit current (Isc = 2.86 μA) and peak power (P max = 10.3 μW), whereas the 60 wt% PTFE device yields the maximum open-circuit voltage (Voc = 4.56 V). These results demonstrate that voltage–current characteristics can be tuned through interfacial state engineering and controlled adjustment of the tribonegative layer composition. To confirm repeatability and stability under manual tapping, the best-performing 30 wt% and 60 wt% devices has been validated using an automated cycle-resolved statistical analysis.