Issue 24, 2017

Single-electrode triboelectric nanogenerators based on sponge-like porous PTFE thin films for mechanical energy harvesting and self-powered electronics

Abstract

Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) are promising innovative energy conversion devices that convert mechanical energy into electricity based on triboelectric friction. In this paper, we report the development of a single-electrode TENG (S-TENG) based on sponge-like porous polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) thin films. The porous PTFE thin films were fabricated via a facile approach by using deionized (DI) water as the soft template. The porosity effect on the output performance of the porous PTFE S-TENG was investigated under mechanical oscillations. The optimal porosity for achieving the maximum VOC output was found to be 5.1 V when the DI water volume fraction was 50%. The output voltage of the porous PTFE S-TENG is 1.8 times higher than that of the solid PTFE thin film based S-TENG under the same oscillation. The porous PTFE S-TENG can also generate considerable electricity by harvesting mechanical energy from human motions. An output voltage of 1.1 V was obtained when the S-TENG was pressed by a bare human hand. When pressed by a human hand within a latex glove, the output voltage reached 6.9 V, and the generated electric energy could instantaneously power 5 commercial green light emitting diodes (LEDs) without any energy storage process. This development of the porous PTFE S-TENG could open a new avenue towards developing self-powered personal electronics, owing to its flexibility, simple one-electrode structure, and ability to harvest mechanical energy from human motions.

Graphical abstract: Single-electrode triboelectric nanogenerators based on sponge-like porous PTFE thin films for mechanical energy harvesting and self-powered electronics

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
28 Mar 2017
Accepted
10 May 2017
First published
10 May 2017

J. Mater. Chem. A, 2017,5, 12252-12257

Single-electrode triboelectric nanogenerators based on sponge-like porous PTFE thin films for mechanical energy harvesting and self-powered electronics

M. Wang, N. Zhang, Y. Tang, H. Zhang, C. Ning, L. Tian, W. Li, J. Zhang, Y. Mao and E. Liang, J. Mater. Chem. A, 2017, 5, 12252 DOI: 10.1039/C7TA02680C

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