Development & optimization of low-cost TENGs using bioderived materials

Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) allow for harvesting oft-overlooked sources of mechanical energy, albeit large-scale production of TENGs is currently impractical due in part to the inherent environmental cost of the electronic components. Rubber-based triboelectric nanogenerators (R-TENGs) are a welcome recourse; they address concerns intrinsic to their nonrenewable counterparts by replacing unsustainable materials with inexpensive, biodegradable, and ubiquitous ones such as rubber or paper. We investigated the effectiveness of contact-separation R-TENGs by considering several factors namely elapsed time, material combinations, frequency, electrode size, and configurations. The ideal configuration of the R-TENG was able to produce an open circuit voltage of 33 V, a short circuit current of 3.2 µA, and an effective capacitor charging rate for capacitors of different sizes. Such research provides both a framework for honing the utility of such devices, and evidence for the use of rubber and paper as viable alternatives to unsustainable, expensive materials.