Efficient energy transport in constant-voltage triboelectric nanogenerator-based power units

Abstract

Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) have gained considerable interest in the field of high-entropy energy for their ability to convert environmental mechanical energy into electricity. However, TENG technology has typically focused on performance improvement and the overall optimization of system integration. Herein, the energy transport of TENGs is discussed and a real-time intelligent energy optimization system (RIEOS) is established, which consists of three complementary components: a constant-voltage TENG, a low leakage-current capacitor at high voltage, and a power management control module that releases energy at optimal voltage and copes with unstable environmental inputs. This comprehensive consideration enables the RIEOS to improve the average power output by nearly 6.91 times compared to a normal system. The establishment of the RIEOS not only provides a basic logic to achieve the energy-optimal utilization of TENGs in complex mechanical environments, but also guides the development and application of TENG technology from a system integration optimization perspective.