A fast-response adaptive hierarchical mode triboelectric nanogenerator for random gust energy harvesting†

As a clean energy harvesting technology, triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) are becoming increasingly crucial in natural energy harvesting. However, due to the characteristics of natural wind, including randomness and broad wind speed ranges, efficient harvesting of wind energy has become a significant obstacle to developing wind energy TENGs. For this purpose, a fast-response triboelectric nanogenerator (FR-TENG). for gust energy capture is proposed in this paper. It contains a multilayer structure with four rotors; the slider mass is different on each layer of the mechanical switch to achieve graded harvesting of wind energy. Experiments proved that by grading settings, the efficiency of harvesting wind energy of the FR-TENG dramatically improves, and the output electrical signal of the FR-TENG can also be significantly enhanced. In the process of charging a 13 μF capacitor at 11.9 m s⁻¹ wind speed, the charging speed of the FR-TENG is approximately 2.25 times that of the Stepless Wind Energy Triboelectric Nanogenerator (S-TENG). When the wind speed is about 9 m s⁻¹, the FR-TENG can light up 640 light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and typically supply power for a thermometer. In addition, after durability testing, the performance of the FRTENG can be maintained at approximately 97%. Therefore, this paper provides a valuable method for collecting efficient and stable wind energy.