Sustainable Piezoelectric Energy Harvesting Using 3D Printing with Chicken Bone Extract

Utilization of biodegradable chicken bone extract, a biowaste,is presented for sustainable energy harvesting via a 3D-printed piezoelectricdevice for bone healing and biomedical applications. Animal waste, if not disposed of carefully, is a threatto theenvironment, as it may cause fouling and microorganism growth andcan be a home for many diseases. Hence, proper waste management isrequired. One such abundantly found biowaste product is chicken bones,which are thrown into nature after the meat is consumed. However,this biowaste (chicken bone extract, CBE) can be utilized to makebioceramics in an efficient way without much labor and cost. Bioceramicsmade from natural sources such as chicken bones have chemical, physical,and biological similarities to the inorganic content of human bonesand hence do not create any toxicity or harmful effects when usedinside the human body. Bone, being a piezoelectric material, makesthe healing of fractures faster (osteoconduction and osteoinduction)due to the electric field it generates. Hence, a piezoelectric devicefabricated from natural CBE could be utilized for generating piezoelectricityto heal bones. The piezoelectric behavior of a CBE bioceramic materialis studied for the first time by developing a device made via 3D printing.Piezoelectric studies were performed at various loads and tappingfrequencies, and a maximum piezoelectric coefficient (d (33)) of & SIM;68.7 pC/N and electromechanical couplingof 0.17 were obtained, which are suitable for piezoelectric energy-harvestingapplications. Normally, the lifetime of piezoelectric devices is low,and their disposal and recycling may also create health hazards. However,the current device made out of degradable natural CBE poses no environmentalthreat after disposal. This novel process opens up new opportunitiesand directions to rethink alternatives for piezoelectric materialsthat are used for sustainable energy harvesting.