This paper studied and realized a flexible nanogenerator based on P(VDF-TrFE) nanofibers and PDMS/MWCNT thin composite membrane, which worked under triboelectric and piezoelectric hybrid mechanisms. The P(VDF-TrFE) nanofibers as a piezoelectric functional layer and a triboelectric friction layer are formed by electrospinning process. In order to improve the performance of triboelectric nanogenerator, the multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) is doped into PDMS patterned films as the other flexible friction layer to increase the initial capacitance. The flexible nanogenerator is fabricated by low cost MEMS processes. Its output performance is characterized in detail and structural optimization is performed. The device’s output peak-peak voltage, power and power density under triboelectric mechanism are 25 V, 98.56 μW and 1.98 mW/cm3 under the pressure force of 5 N, respectively. The output peak-peak voltage, power and power density under piezoelectric working principle are 2.5 V, 9.74 μW, and 0.689 mW/cm3 under the same condition, respectively. We believe that the proposed flexible, biocompatible, lightweight, low cost nanogenerator will supply effective power energy sustainably for wearable devices in practical applications.

Recently, triboelectric energy nanogenerators (TENGs) have been paid the most attention by many researchers to convert mechanical energy into electrical energy. TENGs usually have a simple structure and a high output voltage. However, their high internal resistance results in low output power. In this work, we propose a flexible triboelectric energy nanogenerator with the double-side tribological layers of polydimethlysiloxane (PDMS) and PDMS/multiwall carbon nanotube (MWCNT). MWCNTs with different concentrations have been doped into PDMS to tune the internal resistance of triboelectric nanogenerator and optimize its output power. The dimension of the fabricated prototype is ~3.6 cm3. Three-axial force sensor is used to monitor the applied vertical forces on the device under vertical contact-separation working mode. The Prototype with 10 wt% MWCNT (Prototype I) produces higher output voltage than one with 2 wt% MWCNT (Prototype II) due to its higher dielectric parameter measured by LRC impedance analyzer. The triboelectric output voltages of Prototype I and Prototype II are 30 V and 25 V under the vertical force of 3.0 N, respectively. Their maximum triboelectric output powers are ~130 μW at 6 MΩ and ~120 μW at 8.6 MΩ under vertical forces, respectively.

Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) converting mechanical energy into electrical energy have received much attention because of their huge potential applications for supplying power to electronic devices. Improving the performance of TENGs has become a research hot point because of their output limited current. In this paper, we propose a flexible single-electrode triboelectric nanogenerator based on porous NaCO/polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) structure to enhance the triboelectric performance for nanogenerators. To compare their output performance, NaCl and sugar are normally used as sacrificial template for triboelectric nanogenerator. As an experimental result, the nanogenerator based on porous NaCO/PDMS structure obtains the open-circuit voltage of 125 V and maximum output current of 100 μA, which are higher than that generated by NaCl/PDMS and sugar/PDMS TENGs. And the generated electric energy of NaCO/PDMS TENG could instantaneously power 42 commercial light-emitting diodes without any energy storage devices. This developed porous NaCO/PDMS TENG could open a new application field for self-powered personal electronics because of its flexibility, simple manufacturing process, and the ability to harvest mechanical energy from human motions.

This article describes an ultrathin transparent biocompatible single-friction-surface triboelectric and piezoelectric generator as a body moving sensor for wearable application.

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This paper describes the design, fabrication, and characterization of an integrated flexible energy harvester with triboelectric and piezoelectric hybrid mechanisms. The double-side tribological layers are polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and PDMS/multiwall carbon nanotube (MWCNT) carbon nanotube, respectively, which works at triboelectric mechanism. The Polyvinylidene Fluoride (PVDF) film with double-side Al electrodes is bonded with PDMS layer to form the functional layer of piezoelectric harvester. The dimension of the fabricated prototype is 15 mm × 10 mm × 5 mm. The experiments at the varied frequencies from 1 to 5 Hz are conducted to characterize the performance of the harvester under the tapping force of 5 N. The output voltages from triboelectric and piezoelectric harvester are 30 and 6.5 V at 5 Hz, respectively. The maximum output power from triboelectric one is ∼3.4 μW under the matched resistance of 15 M . While the maximum power from piezoelectric one was ∼0.12 μW at 1 M . [2015-0003] Index Terms-PVDF thick film, vibration, coupled mechanisms, PDMS/MWCNT, energy harvester.

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