Abstract
Triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) is a kind of mechanical energy harvesters based on triboelectric effect. Its output performance strongly depends on the structural design, material properties, circuit status, and mechanical loading process. In this work, we develop a new theoretical method for analysing the contact-separation mode TENG devices with dimensionless formulations which are based on the V-Q-x relationship with the TENG being treated as a parallel-plate capacitor. The correctness and accuracy of the proposed method and model are verified and validated via a series of experimental results. With the proposed method, the scaling laws between the performance and structure, material properties, circuit status and mechanical loading are established, and the output performance of the devices can be predicted with all the parameters being considered simultaneously. The developed model and formulas offer good guidance for structural design and optimization strategies for TENG devices, which could lead to the fast development of high performance of TENGs through accurate numerical analysis at low cost.
Validation of the scaling laws for dimensionless maximum voltage of contact mode triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG). The theoretical predictions based on the proposed dimensionless formulars agree very well with the experimental measurements despite that the latter are achieved with different device structures, mechanical loadings and circuit conditions. This demonstrates that the established scaling law reveals the underlying general correlation between the physical properties of the device and its output performance, which may provide robust guidelines for optimization strategies of contact mode TENG. [Display omitted]
•An optimization method based on multi-parameter analysis is proposed for TENG.•A scaling law is established between the output performance and device parameters.•All parameters could be designed simultaneously to enhance the output performance.