Self-Powered Buoy Triboelectric Nanogenerator with Nanofiber-Enhanced Surface for Efficient Wave Energy Harvesting

The power supply capacity of ocean buoy systems is the
current
bottleneck for distributed devices in the ocean. Securing a clean
and sustainable energy supply through a wave buoy is an urgent and
effective way to harvest blue energy. However, traditional self-powered
buoy design usually depends on the floater geometry and sinker sizes,
leading to higher fabrication costs. In this work, we designed a nanofiber-enhanced
buoy-triggered TENG (B-TENG) with a double helical origami structure,
in which the dielectric layer used cellulose nanocrystal (CNC) as
an additive for low cost and ease of manufacture. To improve the output
power of TENGs, the friction layer Eco/CNC film attached to the tribo-layer
and electrode can switch from a 2D planar to 3D origami structure
freely and significantly improve the output performance of TENGs.
The peak short-circuit current of 3D origami TENG stabilizes over
100 μA on slap loads, with a power density of 13 mW/cm2. Meanwhile, the working mechanism of the 3D origami TENG was also
studied using COMSOL software. The corresponding B-TENG can easily
light up 100 blue LEDs (rated power, 60 mW) under the slow water wave
motions, demonstrating the potential of harvesting blue energy in
actual water circumstances. These findings provide invaluable guidance
for the performance optimization of a buoy-shaped TENG in practical
applications.