Hybrid Nanogenerator for Renewable Energy Harvesting from Ocean Waves

To harvest renewable energy from ocean waves, in this research we propose to study innovative triboelectric
nanogenerators, a new type of energy harvesters especially good at converting small-scale mechanical motions
into electricity. Although ocean wave energy is one of the most abundant and widely distributed renewable energy
resources, it has not yet been extensively used due to high cost and inefficiency of typical electromagnetic
generators (e.g., turbines). In comparison, the triboelectric nanogenerators can achieve higher energy conversion
efficiency at small input mechanical amplitude. We will explore to integrate the triboelectric nanogenerator and
piezoelectric harvester together to gain even larger power density. The hybrid nanogenerator prototype is aimed
at coupling the triboelectric and piezoelectric effects to build self-powered ocean sensing systems for the Internetof-
Things applications.

Faculty Supervisor:

Lihong Zhang

Student:

Partner:

Offshore Energy Research Association of Nova Scotia

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Mining; Professional, scientific and technical services

University:

Memorial University of Newfoundland

Program: