Enhancing the Piezoelectric Properties of Bacterial Cellulose Films by Incorporation of ZnO Nanoparticles

Bacterial cellulose (BC) is often used as a functional layer material for piezoelectric sensors due to its degradability. However, its weak piezoelectric properties become a key constraint for its further application. In this paper, BC composites containing zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles were prepared by physical blending method from improving their piezoelectric properties, and the changes of their piezoelectric properties were investigated and analyzed. The results show that the piezoelectric constant of the composite has been increased by about five times to 26 pC/N and maintains a fairly good sensitivity to clearly distinguish different external forces. In addition, the dielectric constant increased slightly, becoming 1.5 times higher at low frequencies. This paper provides a reference for the development of high-quality self-powered sensors, which has a certain reference value for the innovation and development of secondary equipment in power system transmission and distribution lines.