A droplet-based electricity generator for large-scale raindrop energy harvesting

Droplet-based electricity generator (DEG) has been demonstrated as efficient method to harvest energy from the natural environment. However, the complex structure and low output power density are still two barriers to wide applications. To this end, by making full use of the self-capacitance effect of the upper electrode, a droplet-based electricity generator with a simple open structure (SCE-DEG) was proposed in this paper. The working principle of SCE-DEG and the effects of electrode geometry and droplet parameters (volume, conductivity, and dropping frequency) on its output voltage were analyzed. Compared with the DEG, the upper electrode of SCE-DEG does not need to connect to the lower electrode and the ultra-high instantaneous peak output power (765 W/m2) can still be achieved by self-capacitance effect of the upper electrode. This research provides a reference for the largescale raindrop energy harvesting.

Automated summary

A droplet-based electricity generator with a simple open structure (SCE-DEG) was proposed in this study, which utilizes the self-capacitance effect of the upper electrode to overcome the barriers of complex structure and low output power density in existing droplet-based electricity generators.