Microdroplet Generation Using Superhydrophobic Meshes and Its Application in a Liquid-Solid Triboelectric Nanogenerator to Enhance Output Performance.

Abstract

This study demonstrates a passive strategy for enhancing the output of liquid-solid triboelectric nanogenerators (L-S TENGs) using superhydrophobic meshes to induce microdroplet generation and regulate droplet charging. When a millimetric water droplet impinges on a superhydrophobic mesh, it fragments into microdroplets, leading to a substantial increase in the total liquid surface area. This surface-area amplification is directly correlated to the total droplet charge, which can be further tuned by selecting appropriate hydrophobic coating materials on the mesh. At an impact velocity of 2.58 m/s, the total liquid surface area increased by up to 4.06-fold, resulting in a 7.7-fold enhancement in total droplet charge compared with that in the no-mesh case. Consequently, the voltage output of the L-S TENG was significantly improved, reaching -0.329 V─more than an 11-fold increase relative to that generated by a single droplet without a mesh.