A Drill Pipe‐Embedded Vibration Energy Harvester and Self‐Powered Sensor Based on Annular Type Triboelectric Nanogenerator for Measurement while Drilling System

Abstract Measurement while drilling (MWD) system of offshore drill pipe is of great significance for safety production. It is greatly demanded to develop a sustainable power supply as well as self‐powered sensors for the MWD system. In this work, a drill pipe‐embedded annular type triboelectric nanogenerator (AT‐TENG) is proposed and systematically investigated, and it consists of an annular silicone rubber and a pair of electrodes. The design of the AT‐TENG allows the silicone rubber to contact and separate with the electrodes easily in a narrow space under arbitrary direction vibration to realize power generation. The experimental results show that the peak power density of AT‐TENG with single‐pair electrode reaches 63.7 W m −3 under the vibration frequency of 4 Hz and amplitude of 100 mm. The minimum peak voltage is > 65 V within 360 ° lateral vibration range. The peak voltage achieves 351.62 V under the third‐order natural frequency. In addition, the amplitude and frequency obtained from the voltage signals exhibit linearly with those of actual vibration. The mean error between the frequency detected by AT‐TENG and actual frequency is < 0.03%. Thus, the AT‐TENG can serve as an energy harvester and self‐powered vibration sensor.