Electret elastomer-based stretchable triboelectric nanogenerators with autonomously managed power supplies for self-charging systems

Stretchable power sources capable of accommodating large deformations are urgently demanded for various stretchable and wearable electronics. In this work, we report a stretchable electret-based triboelectric nano -generator (SEB-TENG) consisting of elastomeric electret as electrification materials and organo-hydrogels as electrodes. The electret elastomer, prepared by uniformly dispersing SiO2 nanoparticles in the elastomer matrix and thermally injecting static charges, obtains a high surface potential, high tensile strain (796%), and long stability. Then, the SEB-TENG device also achieves high stretchability (423%) and high charge density (0.2 mC m-2). Furthermore, a power management module (PMM) is designed to maximize the energy utilization of the SEB-TENG. The integrated self-charging system can be sufficiently used to constantly power a watch, or charge a Li-ion coin cell which subsequently provides sustainable power supplies to a digital thermometer. This work provides a viable approach to simultaneously achieve high output performances and high stretchability of in-tegrated power sources.

Automated summary

This work presents a stretchable electret-based triboelectric nano-generator (SEB-TENG) for stretchable and wearable electronics. The device exhibits high stretchability, high charge density, and can be used to power electronic devices. A power management module (PMM) is also designed to optimize energy utilization.