All-textile wearable triboelectric nanogenerator using pile-embroidered fibers for enhancing output power

Textile-based triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) have received considerable attention for wearable applications owing to their significant advantages, such as flexibility, lightness, and breathability. Recently, several studies based on the modification of friction surfaces for improving the triboelectric output performance have been reported. However, previously reported methods require complicated fabrication processes and may deteriorate the intrinsic properties of a textile. Herein, we present a wearable TENG utilizing a textile composed of pile-embroidered (rough-textured) fibers as a contact surface. The deformability of the fibers originating from the suspended structure provides a large contact area that can participate in triboelectrification. This significantly increases charge density induced on the surface in response to a compressive force, resulting in a high output voltage of 113 V. The TENG also exhibits a high output power, which is 24 times higher than that of the TENG based on satin-embroidered (flat-textured) fibers. More importantly, owing to the conventional textile manufacturing process based on three-dimensional embroidery, the fabrication of our TENG is significantly simpler and more cost-effective than previously reported techniques. Experimental demonstrations as a wearable energy harvester highlight the utility of the TENG for generating electricity from various human motions. Based on ease of manufacturing and high output performance, the proposed harvester is a promising candidate as a low-cost power source for next-generation electronics, such as Internet of Things devices and self-powered smart clothing.