Triboelectric Nanogenerator for Harvesting Wind Energy and as Self-Powered Wind Vector Sensor System

Abstract

We report a triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) that plays dual roles as a sustainable power source by harvesting wind energy and as a self-powered wind vector sensor system for wind speed and direction detection. By utilizing the wind-induced resonance vibration of a fluorinated ethylene-propylene film between two aluminum foils, the integrated TENGs with dimensions of 2.5 cm × 2.5 cm × 22 cm deliver an output voltage up to 100 V, an output current of 1.6 μA, and a corresponding output power of 0.16 mW under an external load of 100 MΩ, which can be used to directly light up tens of commercial light-emitting diodes. Furthermore, a self-powered wind vector sensor system has been developed based on the rationally designed TENGs, which is capable of detecting the wind direction and speed with a sensitivity of 0.09 μA/(m/s). This work greatly expands the applicability of TENGs as power sources for self-sustained electronics and also self-powered sensor systems for ambient wind detection.

Radial-arrayed rotary electrification for high performance triboelectric generator

“…Among them, harvesting mechanical energy is attracting increasing attentions due to the extensive availability of the target resource [16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25] . Recently we have introduced a new concept on the basis of triboelectrification for harvesting energy from various ambient mechanical motions [26][27][28] . However, a breakthrough is desperately needed to boost the output power so that it can be used as an effective power source for practical applications.…”

Flutter-driven triboelectrification for harvesting wind energy

“…Most research in this area is focused on piezoelectric materials [4][5][6][7] such as lead zirconium titanate and polyvinylidene fluoride, where a deformation of piezoelectric material gives rise to electrical energy. The recently invented triboelectric generator harvests mechanical energy through a periodic contact motion based on the coupling of the triboelectric and electrostatic effects, and many approaches have been carried out to improve the electrical output performance of the triboelectric generator [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16] . A triboelectric generator is one of the most promising energy conversion systems due to its low cost, simple fabrication routes and the possibility of high-power density 17,18 .…”

A record flexible piezoelectric KNN ultrafine-grained nanopowder-based nanogenerator

“…[12][13][14] Furthermore, huge progress has been made in the piezoelectric field by Prof. Zhong Lin Wang's group up to now, 15,16 and other groups also make great progress. [17][18][19] To achieve higher output voltage and current, some researchers turn to traditional triboelectric ways, [20][21][22] while others switch to the way of the combination the piezoelectric and triboelectric together. 23 It is necessary to explore a kind of device which can not only generate high output voltage and current but also be of quite good flexibility.…”