Super-Low Friction Electrification Achieved on Polytetrafluoroethylene Films-Based Triboelectric Nanogenerators Lubricated by Graphene-Doped Silicone Oil

The novel proposal of Wang’s triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) has inspired extensive efforts to explore energy harvesting devices from the living environment for the upcoming low-carbon society. The inevitable friction and wear problems of the tribolayer materials become one of the biggest obstacles for attaining high-performance TENGs. To achieve super-low friction electrification of the TENGs, the tribological and electrical behaviors of the sliding-mode TENGs based on polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) films and metallic balls under both dry friction and liquid lubrication conditions were investigated by using a customized testing platform with a ball-on-flat configuration. Most interestingly, a super-low friction coefficient of 0.008 was achieved under graphene-doped silicone oil lubrication. The corresponding wear rate of the PTFE film was drastically decreased to 8.19 × 10−5 mm3/Nm. Simultaneously, the output short-circuit current and open-circuit voltage were enhanced by 6.8 times and 3.0 times, respectively, compared to the dry friction condition. The outstanding triboelectrical performances of the PTFE film when sliding against a steel ball are attributed to the synergistic lubricating effects of the silicone oil and the graphene nanosheets. The current research provides valuable insights into achieving the macro-scale superlubricity of the TENGs in practical industrial applications.