Boosting the electrical output of cement-based triboelectric nanogenerator by surface treatment technique

Abstract

Triboelectric nanogenerators have the potential to convert mechanical energy to electric energy through electrostatic induction thus they are promising alternative cleaning energy sources for human beings. The objective of this work is to increase the electrical outputs of cement-based triboelectric nanogenerators (C-TENGs) by using a surface polishing treatment technique. The hand-mixed cement pastes with water-to-cement ratios of 0.3, 0.4, and 0.5 by weight were cast in the molds and cured in saturated lime water. A study was conducted to investigate the electrical output, which included voltage and current, under a single vertical contract-separation mode with a constant force and a frequency of 3 Hz. To improve the electrical generating performance, all samples were subjected to a surface treatment by polishing with sandpaper. After electrical investigations, the electrical outputs were remeasured. The results showed that the modified surface samples have significantly higher electrical outputs than that of the pristine sample due to the increased contact surface area. Moreover, the cement paste with a water-to-cement ratio of 0.3 after a polished-surface treatment exhibits the highest power density for an external resistance of 10 MΩ, improving around 70% higher than the pristine sample. The study successfully presents a low-cost and simple technique for improving the performance of cement-based triboelectric nanogenerators.