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Triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) provides a new cost‐effective strategy to harvest water wave energy due to the broad options of triboelectric materials and the high efficiency in low‐frequency energy harvesting. Here, a new triboelectric–electromagnetic hybrid nanogenerator (TEHG) consisting of a soft ball‐based triboelectric nanogenerator (SB‐TENG) and an electromagnetic generator (EMG) is reported for harvesting wave energy. The soft balls are utilized as one triboelectric layer to increase the contact area with the copper electrodes. The critical parameters that may affect the energy harvesting performance of the SB‐TENG are investigated, including the type of the filled liquids, the thickness of the silicone shell, the number of layers, and the added soft balls. Under an operating frequency of 1 Hz, the SB‐TENG and the EMG can reach a maximum output peak power of 0.5 and 8.5 mW, respectively. The TEHG has been demonstrated to power dozens of light‐emitting diodes and drives a digital temperature sensor to monitor the water temperature for an extended period. This study provides a new design and approach to improve the output performance of TENGs and presents an excellent prospect for building a self‐powered water‐sensing system driven by low‐frequency water waves. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multifunctional metamaterials (MFMs) capable of energy harvesting and vibration control are particularly attractive for smart structures, wearable/biointegrated electronics, and intelligent robotics. Here, a novel MFM based on triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs), which can harvest environmental energy and reduce vibration simultaneously, is reported. The unit cells of the MFM consist of a local resonator, an integrated contact‐ separation mode TENG, and spiral‐shaped connecting beams. A multiphysics theoretical model is developed for quantitatively evaluating the performance of the MFM by including the mechanical and electrical fields interactions, which is further validated by experimental testing. It is demonstrated that the TENG‐based MFM can not only effectively harvest vibration energy to power electronics but also dramatically suppress low‐frequency mechanical vibration. This work provides a new design and model for developing novel TENG‐based MFMs for advanced smart systems used in a variety of applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The push for green and eco-friendly materials has intensified, driven by the mounting environmental concerns associated with traditional petroleum-based products. As land resources shrink and space for development narrows, marine biomaterials have emerged as a promising alternative over the past decades. Well-known for their vast availability, outstanding biocompatibility, impressive biodegradability, and minimal toxicity, marine biomaterials present an ideal foundation for developing eco-friendly triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs). In this review, we present the evolution of TENGs based on marine biomaterials, from their core working principles to their multifaceted applications. We begin by elucidating the operational modes and foundational principles of TENGs. Next, we highlight the intrinsic qualities and advantages of marine biomaterials commonly utilized in TENG designs. Additionally, we discuss approaches adopted to amplify the efficacy of TENGs derived from marine biomaterials. A synthesis of documented applications of these TENGs from existing literature is then presented. We finally discuss the existing challenges and future directions in marine biomaterial-inspired TENGs. [Display omitted] • Intensively introduces the intrinsic qualities and advantages of marine biomaterials commonly utilized in TENG designs. • Systematically reviews the approaches adopted to amplify the efficacy of TENGs derived from marine biomaterials. • Comprehensively summarizes the applications of marine biomaterial-based TENG from existing literature. • We discuss the existing challenges and future directions in marine biomaterial-inspired TENGs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Forest fires present a great threat as they can rapidly grow and become large, resulting in tragic loss of life and property when occurring near occupied land. Here a self‐powered fire alarm system based on a novel multilayered cylindrical triboelectric nanogenerator (MC‐TENG) that can produce electrical power for the detection sensors by harvesting the kinetic energy of moving tree branches in a forest is presented. The major parameters for harvesting the kinetic energy using the proposed MC‐TENG are investigated, including the number of triboelectric layers, the frequency, the amplitude of external excitation, and the orientation between motion direction and device configuration. The fabricated MC‐TENG results in a peak power of 2.9 mW and a maximum average power of 1.2 mW at a low frequency of 1.25 Hz. The integrated self‐powered forest fire alarm system, consisting of fire sensors, a carbon‐based micro‐supercapacitor, and the MC‐TENG, is demonstrated to be able to report fire risk or hazard efficiently, accurately, and robustly. This study provides a new solution to reduce the forest fire risk through a portable and sustainable alarm system by effectively harvesting kinetic energies in natural environment with TENG technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To meet the great need for distributed and sustainable power sources, mechanical energy in the environment is widely used for electricity generation. Based on the coupling effect of triboelectrification and electrostatic induction, triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) as an innovative energy technology has advantages of collecting fluctuating amplitude and low-frequency mechanical energy. In this paper, a leaf-shaped TENG has been demonstrated to harvest multiple ambient mechanical energy. By the characterization with different mechanical energy sources, the leaf-shaped TENG has been proven as an effective tool to scavenge wind, vibration, and falling raindrop energy. Furthermore, based on numerous leaf-shaped TENGs, a leaf-shaped TENG tree has been developed, which can be used for continuous collection of environmental mechanical energy at large-scale. This paper has first exhibited a conformal structure for simultaneously harvesting various mechanical energy, which has bright potentials in environmental monitoring, Internet of things, and wireless sensor networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wind energy has played a reasonable proportion in the current energy structure, extracting energy from wind sources attracts extensive attention in the era of global carbon neutrality. However, traditional wind turbine based on electromagnetic generator are not economic in some cases, the new technology demand for complementing conventional approaches is proposed. Recently, the emerging triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) technology based on the coupling of contact electrification and electrostatic induction have been widely researched and utilized to scavenge wind energy, with the advantages of high efficiency, low cost and portability. Here, the recent advances of wind harvesters based on TENG are reviewed, where the material, structure design, power management and the developed strategies to optimize the performance of TENG-based wind harvesting system are summarized. Meanwhile, the hybridization of TENG with other types of energy harvesting techniques is discussed. Finally, the application, outlook and challenge in the growth of TENG-based wind harvester are outlined. Here, the recent advances of wind harvesters based on triboelectric nanogenerators (TENG) are reviewed. The Strategies to improve the performance of wind driven TENG (WD-TENG) from the perspectives of material, structure optimization and power management are demonstrated. Meanwhile, the applications and development trend of WD-TENG are proposed. [Display omitted] • Strategies to improve performance of WD-TENG from aspects of material, structure and power management are demonstrated. • The hybridization between TENG and other technologies for developing compound wind energy harvesters are demonstrated. • The applications of WD-TENG are discussed, including powering portable electric devices, sensing system, etc. • The existing challenges and trend of development of WD-TENG in the future are proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a tremendous interest to harvest ocean wave energy due to its promising advantages of high-power density, wide distribution, independence of time of day, weather or seasons, and sustainability. However, most of the current energy harvesters or converters based on electromagnetic generators are suffering from unsatisfactory efficiency at low ocean wave triggering frequency and have the drawbacks of complex design, high cost and ease of corrosion in seawater. In this work, we report a matryoshka-inspired hierarchically structured triboelectric nanogenerator (HS-TENG) by nest-assembling multiple shells with decreasing sizes for effectively harvesting low-frequency wave energies with low-cost, high power density and high efficiency. As a proof-of-concept, we have fabricated a three-hierarchical-level HS-TENG by nesting three spherical acrylic shells filled with polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) balls into the gap spaces between the neighboring shells. The important factors that may affect the energy harvesting performance of the HS-TENG are studied, including the size and number of moving balls, the diameter of the holding shell, the amplitude and frequency of wave actuation, as well as the orientation angle between wave motion direction and electrode gap. It is demonstrated that the HS-TENG has superior output performance over the traditional single ball TENG (SB-TENG), with a maximum output peak power of 544 μW at a low frequency of 2 Hz, more than 6.5 times of that obtained by a SB-TENG with the same size, capable of driving different wearable electronics. Based on the optimized design, we further demonstrate that a HS-TENG network formed by a 3 × 3 device array can directly lighten dozens of light-emitting diodes and power an electronic thermometer for monitoring water condition, indicating its capability in effectively harvesting water wave energy for potential large-scale deployment in the ocean. This study provides an innovative hierarchical structure that can effectively improve the output performance of TENGs and paves the way for developing next-generation high-performance TENGs for blue energy harvesting. A matryoshka-inspired hierarchically structured triboelectric nanogenerator (HS-TENG) is proposed to harvest water wave energy in the ocean. The novel hierarchical design and strategy presented in this work provide a new solution to effectively use the limited volume space in a device to enhance the energy density and output performance of the TENGs, paving the way for developing next-generation high-performance TENGs for blue energy harvesting. Image 1 • A matryoshka-inspired hierarchically structured TENG is designed by nest-assembling multiple shells with decreasing sizes. • The HS-TENG has demonstrated a superior output performance over the traditional single ball TENG. • The HS-TENG network can directly lighten dozens of LEDs and power an electronic thermometer for monitoring water conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A biodegradable, transparent, and antibacterial sodium alginate-based triboelectric nanogenerator is proposed. • A vacuum filtration method was used for preparing patterned transparent conductive sodium alginate/AgNWs electrodes. • Sodium alginate/glycerol substrate have good adhesion to realize the complete transfer of the AgNWs pattern. • The triboelectric nanogenerator has been used as a self-powered tactile sensor. The utilization of natural biomaterials in the construction of triboelectric nanogenerators (TENG) has significant implications for the advancement of sustainable self-powered devices. Sodium alginate (SA), an eco-friendly and biodegradable triboelectric material with excellent transparency, is considered an ideal material for wearable TENGs. In this work, we report a biodegradable, transparent, and antibacterial SA-based TENG for mechanical energy harvesting and self-powered tactile sensing. The addition of glycerol, an environment-friendly additive, can enhance flexibility and adhesiveness of the SA, which resulted in well-transferred AgNWs/SA electrodes with high transparency and conductivity. The major parameters that affect the output performance of the fabricated TENG are investigated, including the frequency, thickness and area of the triboelectric layers. The output voltage, transferred charge, and peak power of the TENG could reach up to 53 V, 18 nC, and 4 μW, respectively, which is sufficient to power small electronic devices. In addition, the fabricated TENG device also shows excellent antibacterial and biodegradable capabilities. Finally, the TENG is demonstrated to be an effective self-powered tactile sensor for pressure mapping, human movement monitoring, and wearable human–machine interfacing. This work provides a new strategy to design flexible transparent TENGs with biodegradable SA and paves the way for developing next-generation self-powered transient electronics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]