A flexible large-area triboelectric generator by low-cost roll-to-roll process for location-based monitoring

This paper discusses a flexible large-area power floor developed based on the effect of triboelectrification and electrostatic induction. Facilitated by a simple roll-to-roll fabrication method, this device can be fabricated at a very low cost of $2/m² with large-area micro patterns. As a normal adult walks across the floor, it can produce more than 480 V peak voltage and over 75 μA peak current. The obtained peak instantaneous power was about 4.6 mW. It also showed favorable charging ability, as demonstrated by charging a 1 μF capacitor to 1.6 V in one step, corresponding to a surface charge density of 53.3 μC/m². The spacer distance was systematically investigated and optimized by finite element simulation method. Therefore, this device can produce a pressure sensitivity of 7.1 V/KPa in the pressure range from 2.5 KPa to 30 KPa experimentally, which is about 4.67 times higher than similar devices using the same mechanism. A novel triboelectric generator (TEG) array was proposed based on this large-area TEG (LTEG) for position monitoring. Integrated with the function of power generation and position monitoring, the proposed device is directly applicable to LED-based alarm signals. Generated electricity can be stored in capacitor for use by low-power electronics. Employing a simple signal-processing circuit, the generated signal can also be used to control certain house-hold appliances. In effect, the proposed LTEG has considerable potential for application in harvesting walking energy as well as monitoring human motions. © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.