High performance floating self-excited sliding triboelectric nanogenerator for micro mechanical energy harvesting

Non-contact triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) enabled for both high conversion efficiency and durability is appropriate to harvest random micro energy owing to the advantage of low driving force. However, the low output (<10 mu Cm-2) of non-contact TENG caused by the drastic charge decay limits its application. Here, we propose a floating self-excited sliding TENG (FSS-TENG) by a self-excited amplification between rotator and stator to achieve self-increased charge density, and the air breakdown model of non-contact TENG is given for a maximum charge density. The charge density up to 71.53 mu Cm-2 is achieved, 5.46 times as that of the traditional floating TENG. Besides, the high output enables it to continuously power small electronics at 3ms(-1) weak wind. This work provides an effective strategy to address the low output of floating sliding TENG, and can be easily adapted to capture the varied micro mechanical energies anywhere. High reliability is a huge challenge for sliding mode triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG). Here the authors develop a floating self-excited sliding TENG achieving both high durability and output for sustainable micro mechanical energy harvesting.

Automated summary

This study introduces a floating self-excited sliding TENG which solves the issue of low output in traditional floating TENG, achieving high charge density and output, and can continuously power small electronics.