Wearable fabric-based hybrid energy harvester from body motion and body heat

Abstract

We demonstrate a wearable fabric-based energy harvester (Fab-EH) to hybridize a triboelectric generator (TrG) and a thermoelectric generator (ThG). Using a liquid-phase aluminum (Al) coating technique, we fabricate Al-coated fabrics with high electrical and thermal conductivity while maintaining the original texture. By adopting the Al-coated fabric material as both the electrodes of the TrG and the heat-transport layer of the ThG, the fabricated Fab-EH effectively scavenges electrical energy from body motion and body heat. The Fab-EH charges a storage capacitor with capacitance of 3.3 mF to 3 V within 240 sec with the designed transforming system. Moreover, a smartphone can be partially charged using the harvested energy. The Fab-EH thus has the potential to alleviate the recharging issue for portable and wearable devices.