Novel multifunctional triboelectric nanogenerator based on PSS-PANI/ copper foam composite for self-powered ammonia sensing and food spoilage detection

Ammonia (NH3), a common volatile gas, poses a significant threat to human health due to uncontrolled release in daily life and leaks in industrial production environments. For the ubiquity and hazard of NH3, a triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) driven by high-pressure pulsed airflow has been developed for NH3 detection and food quality evaluation. The triboelectric electrode of the TENG was composed of a composite structure of polystyrene sulfonic acid (PSS)-doped polyaniline (PANI)/copper foam (CF) (referred as PPC-TENG). With doping PSS, PPCTENGs had a 2.11 times improvement in sensing response (30 ppm) compared with the unmodified one. Furthermore, the PPC-TENG could harvest energy from high-pressure exhaust gas, achieving a short-circuit current of 3.61 mu A and an output power of 82.69 mu W, which could power 102 light-emitting diodes (LEDs, 1.5 V) and charge capacitors of different capacities. Owing to the outstanding NH3 sensing capability, the PPCTENG was designed to develop a wireless alarm system for monitoring and alerting excessive NH3. Additionally, the PPC-TENG was further applied to seafood (fresh shrimp) spoilage detection by measuring the NH3 concentration released from the protein-rich foods. This work, based on the concept of "resource reuse", proposes an innovative strategy for energy harvesting and NH3 detection during high-pressure gaseous emission. It not only provides a novel application for NH3 detection but also enables the assessment of shrimp spoilage through NH3 concentration changes, thereby offering significant technical support and practical references for food safety monitoring.