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We developed a high-efficiency rotating triboelectric nanogenerator (R-TENG)-enhanced multilayered antibacterial polyimide (PI) nanofiber air filters for removing ultrafine particulate matter (PM) from ambient atmosphere. Compared to single-layered PI nanofiber filters, the multilayered nanofiber filter can completely remove all of the particles with diameters larger than 0.54 μm and shows enhanced removal efficiency for smaller PM particles. After connecting with aR-TENG, the removal efficiency of the filer for ultrafine particles is further enhanced. The highest removal efficiency for ultrafine particulate matter is 94.1% at the diameter of 53.3 nm and the average removal efficiency reached 89.9%. Despite an increase in the layer number, the thickness of each individual layer of the film decreased, and hence, the total pressure drop of the filter decreased instead of increasing. Moreover, the nanofiber film exhibited high antibacterial activity because of the addition of a small amount of silver nanoparticles. This technology with zero ozone release and low pressure drop is appropriate for cleaning air, haze treatment, and bacterial control.

A square-grid triboelectric nanogenerator (SG-TENG) is demonstrated for harvesting vibrational energy and sensing impulsive forces. Each square of the three-dimensional (3D)-printed square grid is filled with an aluminum (Al) ball. The grid structure allows the SG-TENG to harvest vibrational energy over a broad bandwidth and operate at different vibrational angles. The most striking feature of the SG-TENG is its ability of being scaled and integrated. After connecting two SG-TENGs in parallel, the open-circuit voltage and short-circuit current are significantly increased over the full vibrational frequency range. Being integrated with a table tennis racket, the SG-TENG can harvest the vibrational energy from hitting a ping pong ball using the racket, where a direct hit by the racket generates an average output voltage of 10.9 ± 0.6 V and an average output current of 0.09 ± 0.02 μA. Moreover, the SG-TENG integrated into a focus mitt can be used in various combat sports, such as boxing and taekwondo, to monitor the frequency and magnitude of the punches or kicks from boxers and other practitioners. The collected data allow athletes to monitor their status and improve their performance skills. This work demonstrates the enormous potential of the SG-TENG in energy harvesting and sensing applications.

A smart floor is demonstrated by integrating a square-frame triboelectric nanogenerator (SF-TENG) into a standard wood floor. The smart floor has two working modes based on two pairs of triboelectric materials: one is purposely chosen polytetrafluoroethylene films and aluminum (Al) balls, and the other is the floor itself and the objects that can be triboelectrically charged, such as basketball, shoe soles, and Scotch tape, etc. Utilizing the Al balls enclosed inside shallow boxes, the smart floor is capable of harvesting vibrational energy and, hence, provides a nonintrusive way to detect sudden falls in elderly people. In addition, when the basketball is bounced repeatedly on the floor, the average output voltage and current are 364 ± 43 V and 9 ± 1 μA, respectively, and 87 serially connected light-emitting diodes can be lit up simultaneously. Furthermore, the friction between the triboelectrically chargeable objects and the floor can also induce an alternating current output in the external circuit without the vibration of the Al balls. Normal human footsteps on the floor produce a voltage of 238 ± 17 V and a current of 2.4 ± 0.3 μA. Therefore, this work presents a smart floor with built-in SF-TENG without compromising the flexibility and stability of the standard wood floor and also demonstrates a way to harvest ambient energy solely by using conventional triboelectric materials in our daily life.

We developed a high-efficiency rotating triboelectric nanogenerator (R-TENG) enhanced polyimide (PI) nanofiber air filter for particulate matter (PM) removal in ambient atmosphere. The PI electrospinning nanofiber film exhibited high removal efficiency for the PM particles that have diameters larger than 0.5 μm. When the R-TENG is connected, the removal efficiency of the filter is enhanced, especially when the particle diameters of the PM are smaller than 100 nm. The highest removal efficiency is 90.6% for particles with a diameter of 33.4 nm and the highest efficiency enhancement reaches 207.8% at the diameter of 76.4 nm where the removal efficiency enhanced from 27.1% to 83.6%. This technology with zero ozone release and low pressure drop offers an approach for air cleaning and haze treatment.

As a green and eco-friendly technology, triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) can harvest energy from human motion to generate electricity, so TENGs have been widely applied in wearable electronic devices to replace traditional batteries. However, the surface of these TENGs is easily contaminated and breeds bacteria, which is a threat to human health. Here, we report an antibacterial composite film-based triboelectric nanogenerator (ACF-TENG) that uses Ag-exchanged zeolite (Ag-zeolite) and polypropylene (PP) composite film as the triboelectric layer. Adding a small amount of Ag-zeolite with excellent antibacterial properties can increase the dielectric permittivity and improve the surface charge density of composite films, which enhances the output performance of the ACF-TENG. The open-circuit voltage (VOC), short-circuit current (ISC), and transferred charge (QTr) of the ACF-TENG are about 193.3, 225.4, and 233.3% of those of a pure PP film-based TENG, respectively. Because of the silver in the Ag-zeolite, ...

The sliding-mode triboelectric nanogenerator (S-TENG) with grated structure has important applications in energy harvest and active sensors; however its concavo-convex structure leads to large frictional resistance and abrasion. Here, we developed a S-TENG with a chemical group grated structure (S-TENG-CGG), in which the triboelectric layer's triboelectric potential has a positive-negative alternating charged structure. The triboelectric layer of the S-TENG-CGG was fabricated through a reactive ion etching process with a metal shadow mask with grated structure. In the etched region, the nylon film, originally positively charged as in friction with stainless steel, gained opposite triboelectric potential and became negatively charged because of the change of surface functional groups. The output signals of the S-TENG-CGG are alternating and the frequency is determined by both the segment numbers and the moving speed. The applications of the S-TENG-CGG in the charging capacitor and driving calculator are demonstrated. In the S-TENG-CGG, since there is no concavo-convex structure, the frictional resistance and abrasion are largely reduced, which enhances its performances in better stability and longer working time.

A practical, highly flexible capillary-tube triboelectric nanogenerator (ct-TENG) is reported as a microfluidic sensor. The ct-TENG is composed of an ultrafine tubular sandwich structure of polytetrafluoroethylene capillary tube, double helix aluminum foil, and silicon rubber hermetic tube. For the first time, microliter sampling (sampling volume, 0.5 µL), nondestructive and highly flexible, is achieved simultaneously for a microliquid sensing device. The self-powered ct-TENG is capable of outputting selectable electrical signals (1.1 V, 10 nA, 0.9 nC) used for sensing a volume of 0.5 µL microliquid due to Maxwell's displacement current generated with energy converted from microliquid flow. It also achieves both total aerobic count monitoring and electrical conductivity (κ) detection. Moreover, the ct-TENG is ultrafine/highly flexible structure and enables its application as a microliter magnitude active sensor for qualitative/quantitative detection. This work provides new opportunities for multifunctional sensing and potential applications in microliquid biological and chemical monitoring/detection technology.

The triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) is a promising energy harvesting technology that can convert mechanical energy into electricity and can be used as self-powered active sensors. However, previous studies are mostly carried out at room temperature without considering the temperature effect on the electrical performance of TENGs, which is critical for the application of electronics powered by TENGs in different regions in the world. In the present work, a TENG that worked in the single-electrode and contact-separation mode is utilized to reveal the influence of environment temperature on the electrical performance of TENG. The electrical performance of the TENG shows a decreasing tendency, as the temperature rises from −20 to 150 °C, which is controlled by the temperature-induced changes in the ability of storing and gaining electrons for polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE). The storing electron ability change of PTFE is attributed to two aspects: one is the reduction of relative permittivity of PTFE sheet as the temperature increases, and the other is the variations of effective defects such as the escape of trapped charges in shallow traps and surface oxidation under the effect of temperature perturbation. This work can provide useful information for the application of TENG in both electric power generation and self-powered sensors in the harsh environment.

Hourglass, or sandglass, is known for centuries to record the passage of time. Here, an hourglass triboelectric nanogenerator (HG-TENG) is reported as a power source by harnessing the kinetic energy of falling particles. By employing the geometry of an hourglass and replacing the sand with a mixture of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) pellets and Al balls, the HG-TENG delivers a train of electrical pulses of the same sign without a rectifier bridge. When the volume ratio of the PTFE pellets to the Al balls is 1:1, the HG-TENG is able to light up 160 commercial light emitting diodes intermittently for 18 s. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that the HG-TENG can also serve as a self-powered UV counterfeit detector.