Enhanced Output of On-Body Direct-Current Power Textiles by Efficient Energy Management for Sustainable Working of Mobile Electronics

Triboelectric power textile (TPT) that can harvest widespread but always neglected human biomechanical energy is considered a promising and reliable energy source for wearable electronics. However, the alternating current and high impedance of triboelectric nanogenerators as well as the meager electrical output caused by the properties of the textile itself greatly restrict its practical applications. Here, an autonomous power textile with practical application value, which consists of a high-output direct-current TPT (DC-TPT) and a miniaturized energy management module (EMM), is achieved for continuous operation of wearable and mobile electronics. The home-preparable multiarray DC-TPT can harvest transferred charge of 5.5 mu C per cycle with nine repeating units. Moreover, it is found that incorrect sewing positions of the polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) yarn change the working mechanism with a decreased DC output. The EMM with energy conversion efficiency of 82.6% can reduce the impedance of DC-TPT from 200 to 1.6 M omega. With its powerful assistance, the watch can work continuously for 172 s just by manually sliding the DC-TPT 1.6 s on an arm, and wireless signals can be transmitted to 281 m away after sliding for 2 min. Various widely used electronics can also be easily and continuously driven.