A universal self-charging system driven by random biomechanical energy for sustainable operation of mobile electronics

Human biomechanical energy is characterized by fluctuating amplitudes and variable low frequency, and an effective utilization of such energy cannot be achieved by classical energy-harvesting technologies. Here we report a high-efficient self-charging power system for sustainable operation of mobile electronics exploiting exclusively human biomechanical energy, which consists of a high-output triboelectric nanogenerator, a power management circuit to convert the random a.c. energy to d.c. electricity at 60% efficiency, and an energy storage device. With palm tapping as the only energy source, this power unit provides a continuous d.c. electricity of 1.044 mW (7.34 W m−3) in a regulated and managed manner. This self-charging unit can be universally applied as a standard ‘infinite-lifetime' power source for continuously driving numerous conventional electronics, such as thermometers, electrocardiograph system, pedometers, wearable watches, scientific calculators and wireless radio-frequency communication system, which indicates the immediate and broad applications in personal sensor systems and internet of things.

[1]  B. Grzybowski,et al.  The Mosaic of Surface Charge in Contact Electrification , 2011, Science.

[2]  Rusen Yang,et al.  Effect of humidity and pressure on the triboelectric nanogenerator , 2013 .

[3]  J. Rogers.  Electronics for the human body. , 2015, JAMA.

[4]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Integrated multilayered triboelectric nanogenerator for harvesting biomechanical energy from human motions. , 2013, ACS nano.

[5]  Long Lin,et al.  Motion charged battery as sustainable flexible-power-unit. , 2013, ACS nano.

[6]  S. Beeby,et al.  Energy harvesting vibration sources for microsystems applications , 2006 .

[7]  Wei Wang,et al.  Frequency-multiplication high-output triboelectric nanogenerator for sustainably powering biomedical microsystems. , 2013, Nano letters.

[8]  Juan Du,et al.  Effect of pretreatment on electrochemical etching behavior of Al foil in HCl–H2SO4 , 2013 .

[9]  Simiao Niu,et al.  Theoretical systems of triboelectric nanogenerators , 2015 .

[10]  R. Duggirala,et al.  Pervasive power: a radioisotope-powered piezoelectric generator , 2005, IEEE Pervasive Computing.

[11]  Gerbrand Ceder,et al.  Unlocking the Potential of Cation-Disordered Oxides for Rechargeable Lithium Batteries , 2014, Science.

[12]  Zhenan Bao,et al.  Skin-inspired electronic devices , 2014 .

[13]  Joseph A. Paradiso,et al.  Energy scavenging for mobile and wireless electronics , 2005, IEEE Pervasive Computing.

[14]  Ali Javey,et al.  Performance enhancement of a graphene-zinc phosphide solar cell using the electric field-effect. , 2014, Nano letters.

[15]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Theoretical study of contact-mode triboelectric nanogenerators as an effective power source , 2013 .

[16]  Wenzhuo Wu,et al.  Controlled Growth of Aligned Polymer Nanowires , 2009 .

[17]  M. Dresselhaus,et al.  New Directions for Low‐Dimensional Thermoelectric Materials , 2007 .

[18]  Sang-Gook Kim,et al.  MEMS power generator with transverse mode thin film PZT , 2005 .

[19]  Tae Yun Kim,et al.  Transparent Flexible Graphene Triboelectric Nanogenerators , 2014, Advanced materials.

[20]  B. Steele,et al.  Materials for fuel-cell technologies , 2001, Nature.

[21]  S. Boisseau,et al.  Cantilever-based electret energy harvesters , 2011 .

[22]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Radial-arrayed rotary electrification for high performance triboelectric generator , 2014, Nature Communications.

[23]  S. Boisseau,et al.  Optimization of an electret-based energy harvester , 2010, 1111.3102.

[24]  T. Skotnicki,et al.  Semi-flexible bimetal-based thermal energy harvesters , 2013, 1301.6472.

[25]  Zhong Lin Wang,et al.  Flexible triboelectric generator , 2012 .

[26]  Robert W. Erickson,et al.  Fundamentals of Power Electronics , 2001 .

[27]  Ying Liu,et al.  Optimization of Triboelectric Nanogenerator Charging Systems for Efficient Energy Harvesting and Storage , 2015, IEEE Transactions on Electron Devices.

[28]  L. McCarty,et al.  Electrostatic charging due to separation of ions at interfaces: contact electrification of ionic electrets. , 2008, Angewandte Chemie.

[29]  Chitta Saha,et al.  Modeling and experimental investigation of an AA-sized electromagnetic generator for harvesting energy from human motion , 2008, Smart Materials and Structures.

[30]  Charles M. Lieber,et al.  Coaxial silicon nanowires as solar cells and nanoelectronic power sources , 2007, Nature.

[31]  Yi Qi,et al.  Nanotechnology-enabled flexible and biocompatible energy harvesting , 2010 .

[32]  John B Goodenough,et al.  The Li-ion rechargeable battery: a perspective. , 2013, Journal of the American Chemical Society.

[33]  Peng Zeng,et al.  Kinetic Energy Harvesting Using Piezoelectric and Electromagnetic Technologies—State of the Art , 2010, IEEE Transactions on Industrial Electronics.

[34]  H. Ghasemi,et al.  Membrane-free battery for harvesting low-grade thermal energy. , 2014, Nano letters.

[35]  Y. Cuia,et al.  Designing nanostructured Si anodes for high energy lithium ion batteries , 2012 .

[36]  Taeseung D. Yoo,et al.  Generating Electricity While Walking with Loads , 2022 .

[37]  Simiao Niu,et al.  Topographically-designed triboelectric nanogenerator via block copolymer self-assembly. , 2014, Nano letters.

[38]  P. Gasnier,et al.  An electret-based aeroelastic flutter energy harvester , 2015 .

[39]  E. P. Lewis.  In perspective. , 1972, Nursing outlook.

[40]  J A Hoffer,et al.  Biomechanical Energy Harvesting: Generating Electricity During Walking with Minimal User Effort , 2008, Science.

[41]  Y. Tai,et al.  Iop Publishing Journal of Micromechanics and Microengineering Parylene-based Electret Power Generators , 2022 .