A Parametric Study of a Sponge-based Triboelectric Energy Harvester

This paper discusses the parametric study of a sponge-based triboelectric energy harvester (SBTENG). Different from the conventional energy harvester, we introduce microporous in our prototype to create a sponge-like structure. The porous is hypothesized to trap the charge from the kinetic movement and, hence, increase - the voltage output. To prove the hypothesis, numerical simulation has been conducted and it shows that the introduction of the porous structure can improve the charge difference by 50.8%, as compared with the nonporous structure. To characterize, we have further performed experimental studies to investigate the electrical output at 0%, 25%, 45%, and 65% NaCl concentration. The result shows significant improvement of the electrical output in the NaCl concentration. We also demonstrated a proof-of-concept experiment to power up LEDs using our developed SBTENG. This study provides a useful guideline for the triboelectric sensor design.