# Multifunctional, energy-autonomous textile sensors enabled by spray-coated two-dimensional heterostructures

## TL;DR

Researchers developed a self-powered, flexible textile sensor using 2D materials that can detect body temperature, humidity, and harmful chemicals like styrene.

## Contribution

A scalable spray-coating method for fabricating energy-autonomous textile sensors with high power density and multifunctional sensing capabilities.

## Key findings

- The sensor achieves a record power density of 793 mW m-2 and a 126% responsivity to styrene vapours.
- It reliably detects body temperature with minimal cross-sensitivity to humidity or VOCs.
- The device remains stable after 80 days of use and 200 bending cycles.

## Abstract

Two-dimensional (2D) materials offer unprecedented opportunities for energy-autonomous wearable electronics, yet their scalable and environmentally friendly integration into textiles remains a major challenge. Here, we introduce an ultrasonic spray-coating method to fabricate water-processable, surfactant-free 2D heterostructures comprising graphene and transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) as electronic dyes on textile fabrics. The resulting lightweight (~1 g/device), flexible textile-integrated triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) demonstrate a record-high power density of 793 mW m-2 among single-phase TMD-based textile devices. These TENGs enable self-powered, wearable detection of environmental and physiological parameters, including atmospheric humidity, body temperature, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) such as acetone and styrene, via a tap-to-sense mechanism. The sensor achieves a record-breaking responsivity of 126% for styrene vapours, making it the first wearable, self-powered styrene sensor. The device’s multifunctionality – driven by thermal modulation of charge transport in the MoS2 layer – enables reliable body temperature detection with minimal cross-sensitivity to humidity or VOCs, crucial under real-world fluctuations. The sensor maintains mechanical resilience and operational stability over 80 days of continuous use and after 200 bending cycles. This work advances scalable, sustainable strategies for multifunctional, self-powered textile sensors and paves the way toward wearable personalised healthcare technologies with accurate multiparameter sensing.