Arch Shaped Triboelectric Nanogenerator for Wave Energy Harvesting and Corrosion Protection

Abstract

ABSTRACT As a renewable energy source, wave energy exploitation reduces fossil energy pollution and aids carbon neutrality. Traditional electromagnetic generators (EMGs) have low low‐frequency conversion efficiency, limiting large‐scale application. Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs), invented in 2012, offer a new way for wave energy harvesting with advantages of wide material selection, low‐frequency adaptability, light weight and low cost, but are restricted by marine corrosion and inefficient low‐frequency capture. This work designed an arch‐structured TENG (Arch‐TENG) that captures wave energy via bending. Compared with CS‐TENG, its charge transfer increases by over 450%, with a charge output density of 12.7 nC cm 2 at 0.5 Hz and stable performance after 26 h tests. The array‐integrated device capable of large‐scale wave energy harvesting is designed based on the Arch‐TENG. It was verified that this device can not only stably power low‐power electronic devices but also be used for cathodic protection tests of carbon steel Q235 in seawater, which will provide more practical applications of TENG in marine environments.