Advances in Green Triboelectric Nanogenerators

Abstract

Triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG), an emerging energy conversion technology, offers innovative pathways for energy harvesting and self‐powered sensing. To achieve superior performance, researchers commonly employ substantial quantities of original or treated polymers, resulting in high energy and precise sensing. Nevertheless, the sustainable development of TENGs faces significant challenges related to environmental compatibility, pollution hazards, and high production and disposal costs. To address this issue, numerous green materials for diverse TENGs are introduced and advanced. These materials may encompass natural resources, household waste, and recyclable materials, among others. Consequently, a review of the progress in TENGs based on green materials, which can be called green TENGs, becomes imperative to advance its sustainable development. To this end, this work comprehensively elucidates the development of green TENGs from the perspective of materials processing and treatment degree for the first time. Various green TENGs, including food waste, discarded daily‐use items, plant organs, biodegradable industrial products, and natural cellulose, are meticulously categorized. This review not only systematically synthesizes the latest research advancements in green TENGs, but also offers insight into their processing methodologies, working characteristics, and potential application scenarios. Finally, it envisions the challenges, proposed solutions, and future research directions for the development of green TENGs.

Advanced Triboelectric Applications of Biomass-Derived Materials: A Comprehensive Review

“…This ability allows them to supply power to small electronic devices or sensors situated in remote locations or embedded within wearable technology [56][57][58], thereby facilitating constant operation without the reliance on conventional power sources. Furthermore, in the context of self-powered sensors, these innovative TENGs find applications in environmental monitoring, healthcare, and industrial sensing [31,59,60].…”

“…This integration facilitates the harvesting of energy from human motion, which can then be utilized to power healthmonitoring sensors, making everyday wearables more autonomous and less reliant on external power sources. By tapping into these abundant natural energies, gelatin-based TENGs offer a green alternative to conventional batteries, mitigating the environmental impact and enhancing the feasibility of deploying technology in remote or inaccessible areas [59]. Moreover, the biocompatibility of gelatin extends the utility of TENGs into the biomedical domain, where they can be developed as implantable or skin-attachable devices.…”

A Low-Frequency Vibration Sensor Based on Ball Triboelectric Nanogenerator for Marine Pipeline Condition Monitoring

“…TENG can be used not only as a self-driven sensor to sense various mechanical and physical signals but also to harvest ambient mechanical energy, integrating energy storage and management to realize a self-charging power supply system to provide continuous power to other small electronic or communication devices. Its potential applications in energy harvesting and self-powered sensors have attracted great attention [ 28 , 29 ]. Numerous studies have shown that TENG has become a versatile and efficient energy-harvesting and self-powered sensing technology with applications ranging from small-scale portable electronics to large-scale blue energy harvesting [ 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 ].…”

All-Cellulose Nanofiber-Based Sustainable Triboelectric Nanogenerators for Enhanced Energy Harvesting

“…Its efficient functionalization and utilization in the energy field are viable strategies for addressing the aforementioned problems, thereby presenting significant potential in developing new functional materials and eco-friendly electronic devices. Cellulose is the dominant component of lignocellulose, and has become one of the preferred materials for TENGs in recent years due to its biodegradability and amenability to chemical modifiability [34][35][36][37]. Importantly, the numerous hydroxyl groups on the surface of cellulose with abundant oxygen atoms are susceptible to electron loss, which makes it suitable for use as a tribopositive material of TENGs [13,38].…”