Optimization and Application Research on Triboelectric Nanogenerator for Wind Energy Based High Voltage Generation

As the scope of use of portable and wearable electronic devices is expanding, the limitations of heavy and bulky solid-state batteries are being revealed. Given that, it is urgent to develop a small energy harvesting device that can partially share the role of a battery and the utilization of energy sources that are thrown away in daily life is becoming more important. Contact electrification, which generates electricity based on the coupling of the triboelectric effect and electrical induction when the two material surfaces are in contact and separated, can effectively harvest the physical and mechanical energy sources existing in the surrounding environment without going through a complicated intermediate process. Recently, the interest in the harvest and utilization of wind energy is growing since the wind is an infinitely ecofriendly energy source among the various environmental energy sources that exist in human surroundings. In this study, the optimization of the energy harvesting device for the effective harvest of wind energy based on the contact electrification was analyzed and then, the utilization strategy to maximize the utilization of the generated electricity was investigated. Natural wind based Fluttering TENG (NF-TENG) using fluttering film was developed, and design optimization was conducted. Moreover, the safe high voltage generation system was developed and a plan for application in the field requiring high voltage was proposed by highlighting the unique characteristics of TENG that generates low current and high voltage. In this respect, the result of this study demonstrates that a portable energy harvesting device based on the contact electrification shows great potential as a strategy to harvest wind energy thrown away in daily life and use it widely in fields requiring high voltage.