Nanoscale Triboelectric-Effect-Enabled Energy Conversion for Sustainably Powering Portable Electronics

TLDR

Harvesting energy from the environment via triboelectric effect is a sustainable, maintenance‑free, green power source for portable electronics, yet its output remains insufficient. The study aimed to demonstrate a rationally designed arch‑shaped triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) that uses contact electrification between a polymer thin film and a metal thin foil. The TENG’s working mechanism was investigated through finite element simulation. The device produced 230 V, 15.5 μA cm⁻², 128 mW cm⁻³, and 10–39 % efficiency, enabling it to power LEDs, charge a lithium‑ion battery, and run a wireless sensor system and a commercial cell phone—its first demonstration of powering personal mobile electronics.

Abstract

Harvesting energy from our living environment is an effective approach for sustainable, maintenance-free, and green power source for wireless, portable, or implanted electronics. Mechanical energy scavenging based on triboelectric effect has been proven to be simple, cost-effective, and robust. However, its output is still insufficient for sustainably driving electronic devices/systems. Here, we demonstrated a rationally designed arch-shaped triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) by utilizing the contact electrification between a polymer thin film and a metal thin foil. The working mechanism of the TENG was studied by finite element simulation. The output voltage, current density, and energy volume density reached 230 V, 15.5 μA/cm2, and 128 mW/cm3, respectively, and an energy conversion efficiency as high as 10–39% has been demonstrated. The TENG was systematically studied and demonstrated as a sustainable power source that can not only drive instantaneous operation of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) but also charge a lithium ion battery as a regulated power module for powering a wireless sensor system and a commercial cell phone, which is the first demonstration of the nanogenerator for driving personal mobile electronics, opening the chapter of impacting general people's life by nanogenerators.