UAH researchers design limestone putty nanogenerator to harvest energy from everyday motion to power small devices
University of Alabama Huntsville
Researchers at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) have created a new kind of triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) that produces electricity through the use of limestone putty, promising a considerable cost savings over conventional manufacturing methods. Invented in 2012, TENGs are small devices that convert mechanical or thermal energy into electricity for use in small, wireless autonomous devices like those in wearable electronics, condition monitoring and wireless sensor networks. TENGs harvest power for these devices by transferring an electric charge between two objects when they contact or slide against one another, through motions such as walking, vibration, rotating tires, moving wind or flowing water, all with very little impact to the environment. Compared to existing TENGs, which use expensive nanotechnology-based fabrication methods, the UAH breakthrough is a new type of TENG that employs “tacky” materials like double-sided adhesive tape or limestone putty to gener
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