Enhanced core-shell nano-conductive piezoelectric sensor via self-oriented beta phase nanocrystals for real-time monitoring of physiological signals

Bangul Khan, Mohamed Elhousseini Hilal*, Syed Bilal Ahmed, Rafi U Shan Ahmad, Liangyi Lyu, Hanjie Chen, Bilawal Khan, Iyappan Gunasekaran, Chuhan Feng, Shiyuan LIU, Zhengbao Yang, Bee Luan Khoo*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Journal Publications and ReviewsRGC 21 - Publication in refereed journalpeer-review

9 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Piezoelectric materials have garnered significant attention due to their exceptional mechanical, electrical, and flexible properties, making them ideal for real-time monitoring of human physiological signals. However, accurately detecting the pattern of physiological signals remains a significant challenge. In this study, we introduce a novel Nano piezo-channelling approach by harnessing the concept of deeply disturbing piezo electrons and exploiting a nano-conductive channel within complex core–shell nanofibers. By systematically enhancing the β-phase of poly (vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) through concentration variation and doping with ammonium salt HHE and integrating polyacrylonitrile (PAN) and copper (Cu) nanoparticles as conductive channels, we have successfully achieved higher beta phase (96.3 %) with the accurate pattern detection of physiological signals The resulting piezoelectric pressure sensor demonstrated a remarkable sensitivity of 3.76 V/N, with response and recovery times of less than 45 ms, and maintained stability over 18,000 cycles. This advanced sensor detected various physiological signals with accurate patterns, including radial, carotid, brachial, temporal, tibial, and popliteal pulse waves and joint movements. To evaluate the quality of these pulse wave signals, we developed a deep recurrent neural network (DRNN) model to predict blood pressure (BP) using pulse wave signals (n = 20), validating the sensor’s accuracy and precision. By enabling accurate, real-time detection of diverse physiological signals, Piezo-channeling-based sensors hold great potential for transforming personalized healthcare, particularly in non-invasive cardiovascular monitoring and the broader field of remote patient monitoring.
© 2025 Published by Elsevier B.V.
Original languageEnglish
Article number162384
JournalChemical Engineering Journal
Volume513
Online published7 Apr 2025
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jun 2025

Funding

This work was supported by the City University of Hong Kong (7006082, 7020073, 9609332, 9609333, 9678292, 7020002), the Research Grants Council (RGC) (9048206, 8799020), the Hong Kong Center for Cerebro-Cardiovascular Health Engineering (COCHE), Innovation and Technology Commission (PRP/001/22FX), the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone Shenzhen Park Project (HZQB-KCZYZ-2021017), and the Education Bureau Gifted Education Programme (3030780).

Research Keywords

  • Piezoelectric
  • Core-shell
  • Physiological signal monitoring
  • Nanocrystals
  • Deep recurrent neural network (DRNN)

RGC Funding Information

  • RGC-funded

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