Cylindrical Direct-Current Triboelectric Nanogenerator with Constant Output Current

In this article, a cylindrical direct-current triboelectric nanogenerator (DC-TENG) that can generate an almost constant current output with a low crest factor by phase coupling is reported for the first time. Here, the influence of phases (P) and groups (G) on the DC-TENG is investigated. Experiments show that the crest factor of current, significantly decreases as the phases increase, and the output performance significantly increases as the groups increase. One phase triboelectric power-generating unit of the DC-TENG with three-phase and five-group (3P5G) produces an open-circuit voltage of 149.5 V, short-circuit current 7.3 mu A, and transferred charge of 56.7 nC at 600 rpm. The DC-TENG can produce a coupling current of 21.6 mu A and the average output power of 2.04 mW after each phase output is rectified and superimposed. Additionally, the crest factor of output current is reduced to 1.08, and the high-performance characteristics of an almost constant direct-current is achieved. The research is of considerable significance to the practical applications of TENGs in powering sensors of low consumption.