A Hybrid Triboelectric-Electromagnetic Nanogenerator Based on Arm Swing Energy Harvesting

Abstract

As wearable devices continue to be updated and iterated, there is an increasing demand for energy supplies that are small, portable and capable of working continuously for extended periods of time. Here, a hybrid triboelectric-electromagnetic nanogenerator (HNG) based on a biomechanical energy harvester is demonstrated. The HNG is designed to be worn on the wrist according to the curve of the wearer’s arm swing. During the swinging of the arm, the magnet covered by the PTFE film will move relative to the curved cavity of the HNG and take on a negative charge by rubbing against the inner wall of the Cu coated cavity, resulting in a change in the potential difference between the two copper electrodes on the inner wall of the curved cavity. The movement of the magnet causes the magnetic flux of the three pairs of coils on both sides of the arc track to change to produce the induced electric potential, which converts the mechanical energy generated by the arm swing into electrical energy. After the rational design, the HNG is integrated into a small size device to achieve the collection of biomechanical energy. Several experiments were conducted to verify the HNG’s usability. Experiments show that the HNG takes 90 s to charge from 0 V to 1.2 V for a 1000 μF capacitor. In addition, the HNG can light up 23 LEDs simultaneously and provide a continuous supply of energy to portable electronic devices, such as temperature sensors and electronic watches after the capacitor has stored the energy. Furthermore, the HNG is experimentally verified by volunteers wearing the HNG to achieve continuous and stable output in all three states of slow swing, fast swing and running swing. This work not only provides a useful reference for human biomechanical energy harvesting, but can also provide a continuous, clean source of energy for wearable devices.

Advancements in Bio-inspired Self-Powered Wireless Sensors: Materials, Mechanisms, and Biomedical Applications

“…One of the important advantages of this hybrid sensor is the clarity of the difference between these signals, which makes it easy to recognize different modes of movement. Zheng et al 362 designed a hybrid triboelectric−electromagnetic nanogenerator to harvest arm swing energy. Rotating the arm leads to the deflection of the conductive magnet covered with the PTFE layer relative to the curved cavity of the hybrid nanogenerator.…”

“…Copyright 2019 American Chemical Society. (D) Hybrid triboelectric−electromagnetic nanogenerator-based biosensor for detection of three modes of slow swing, fast swing, and running swing 364.…”

How the Magnetization Angle of a Linear Halbach Array Influences Particle Steering in Magnetic Drug Targeting—A Systematic Evaluation and Optimization

“…Halbach arrays were proposed by K. Halbach in 1980 for focusing charged particles in accelerator beams [77,78]. However, these arrays are found in the current literature mainly for shaping the fields of electric motors [79][80][81], but also in other various applications such as energy harvesting [82], induction-based cooking [83], refrigerators [84], or in medical applications such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) [85] or just as well in MDT [19].…”

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“…Examples include the development of a triboelectric nanogenerator for self-powered chemical sensors [251], the construction of a ring-shaped vibration TENG for vibration sensors [252], the creation of a sliding-mode TENG for self-powered security applications [253], the fabrication of a 3DWE-TENG for self-powered stretchable sensors, the construction of an SWF-TENG for self-powered stretchable sensing [254], the development of self-powered humidity sensors with structured surfaces (nanowire, nanoporous, nanotube, and monolayer) [255], the use of a garment-integrated TENG for pressure sensors [256], the construction of hybrid TENGs for self-powered sensors [257], self-powered humidity, and temperature sensors [258], the utilization of a flexible TENG based on MXene/GO composites for self-powered health monitoring [259], the construction of a C-TENG for self-powered strain sensors [260], and the production of a hybrid TENG and a piezoelectric nanogenerator for self-powered wear-able sensors [261]. Numerous surveys have highlighted the advantages of TENGs, such as their potential as a blue energy source [262], their role as a renewable energy resource [263], their green energy source suitability with sustainable diagnostics for human healthcare applications [244], their clean energy source attributes with small sizes [150], their ability to offer flexibility and smart applications through materials like MXene-TENG [264], their use as a self-powered device for biomechanical energy harvesting and behavior sensing [265], their suitability for portable and flexible wearable sensing and human healthcare applications [266], their ability to provide flexible and self-charging power systems [267], their capacity for stability and selectivity in self-powered and advanced chemical sensor systems [268], their capability to enhance the energy conversion efficiency for powering LEDs and various TENG applications [269], their proficiency as an effective power resource for flexible pressure sensing and portable electronic equipment [270], their competence in harvesting energy from low-frequency acoustic waves for capacitor charging [146], their ability to sensitively detect physiological signals [146], their characteristics of sustainable and efficient energy conversion ...…”