Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) are electronic devices
capable
of harvesting low-frequency mechanical motions to produce electrical
energy through the triboelectrification effect. A great number of
electronic devices, such as wearable devices, implantable medical
devices, and monitoring sensors, among others, use conventional power
sources such as batteries and capacitors. They are usually toxic,
nondegradable, and hard to recycle, representing human and environmental
hazards. In addition, conventional batteries and capacitors are usually
rigid, heavy, and not suitable for the fabrication of portable and
flexible devices. TENGs appear as a promising option to be used in
the development of light, portable, and self-powered electronic devices.
TENGs were first developed using synthetic polymers such as polytetrafluoroethylene
(PTFE), fluorinated ethylene propylene (FEP), polydimethylsiloxane
(PDMS), and polyimide (Kapton) for the fabrication of the active surfaces
that store charge. Bio-TENGs have been fabricated using biopolymers
such as cellulose, silk, and chitosan. These Bio-TENGs take advantage
of the inherent biodegradability and biocompatibility of biopolymers.
In order to improve the capability of biopolymer-based surfaces to
store electrostatic charge, several treatments are reported, including
the incorporation of nanoparticles and surface treatments. These biopolymer-based
active surfaces with improved properties allow Bio-TENGs to achieve
output performances similar to those reported for synthetic TENGs.
Bio-TENGs have been used in a wide range of applications, such as
human monitoring systems, tissue engineering, electronic devices,
and industrial-level flooring, among others. This review is focused
on the development of Bio-TENGs. The different types of biopolymers
used for the fabrication of active surfaces are described and classified
as protein-based, polysaccharide-based, and synthetic-based biopolymers.
The different strategies used for improving the triboelectric properties
of biopolymer-based surfaces are presented, along with the resulting
output performance of Bio-TENGs. The reported applications for these
Bio-TENGs are also discussed.