A Self-Sustainable Wearable Multi-Modular E-Textile Bioenergy Microgrid System

Abstract

Despite the fast development of various energy harvesting and storage devices, their judicious integration into efficient, autonomous, and sustainable wearable systems has not been widely explored. Here, we introduce the concept and design principles of e-textile microgrids to the world of wearable electronics by demonstrating the operation of a multi-module bioenergy microgrid system. Unlike earlier hybrid wearable energy systems, the presented e-textile microgrid relies solely on human movements to work synergistically, harvesting biochemical and biomechanical energy using sweat-based biofuel cells and triboelectric generators, and regulating the harvested energy via supercapacitor modules for high-power output. Through careful energy budgeting, the versatile e-textile system offers fast-booting and extended-harvesting to efficiently power liquid crystal displays continuously or a sweat sensor-electrochromic display system in pulsed sessions. Implementing the “compatible form factors, commensurate performance and complementary functionality” design principles, the flexible, textile-based bioenergy microgrid offers attractive prospects for the design and operation of efficient, sustainable, and autonomous wearable systems.

Self-Powered Wearable Biosensors

“…(B) Wearable e-textile microgrid system that unites BFCs and TENGs for hybrid biochemical and biomechanical energy harvesting. Reproduced with permission from ref .…”

“…Pairing biochemical and biomechanical harvesters is one means of scavenging energy efficiently and reliably from human activities, as shown in Figure B . During human movements, the TENGs harvest biomechanical energy to generate motion-induced charge instantly, and the activated BFCs harvest biochemical energy from enzymatic reactions of human sweat for a continuous power delivery.…”

Sustainable wearable energy storage devices self‐charged by human‐body bioenergy

“…Meanwhile, integrating different types of energy harvesters generating energy simultaneously from body motion, biofluids, and body heat together would increase the power generation by fully harvesting human‐body energy, and weaken the influence of human activities and surroundings on the performance of single‐energy harvesters 137,138 . For example, a textile‐based microgrid system has been constructed by integrating TENGs and epidermal BFCs on one textile platform to simultaneously extract energy from human‐body motions and sweat stimulated by body exercise, and then to deliver more energy to wearable energy storage devices 139 . Two energy harvesters alleviated the dependence of a single harvester on the subject's exercise status.…”