TRIBOELECTRIC NANOGENERATOR BASED ON CONTACT AND SEPARATION AS WELL AS SLIDING OF POLYAMIDE ON POLYTETRAFLUOROETHELENE

Abstract

Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) have been proposed to harvest the mechanical energy because of their low cost and simplicity of manufacturing. This work discusses the possibility of designing a TENG operated by the contact and separation as well sliding of two dissimilar materials such as polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and polyamide (PA). The experimental observation revealed that adhering insulated copper wires in PTFE surface sliding on PA increased the voltage generated from the electrostatic charge (ESC). Copper wires of 0.1 mm diameter generated the highest voltage values, then the voltage decreased with increasing the diameter of the wires. It seems that copper wires induced an electric field that induced an electric current. Besides, as the number of copper wires turns increased, voltage difference of the open circuit increased. Generally, contact and separation recorded relatively lower voltage than sliding, while sliding in the transverse direction showed the highest values. It seems that the double layer of ESC generated due to the friction on the contact surfaces of PTFE and PA generated an electric field, while the electric current induced by the copper wires generated extra electric field on the sliding surfaces leading to the voltage increase. It can be concluded that the efficiency of the triboelectric nanogenerators can be enhanced by inserting copper coil under one of the contacting surfaces.