The Performance Investigation of Triboelectric Nanogenerator Based on Flow Induced Vibration by Applying Bluff Bodies With Different Cross Sections

Abstract In this paper, we propose a non-streamlined solid-liquid triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) designed to collect low-velocity flow energy using flow induced vibration (FIV) and the friction electrification effect. We investigate the influence of FIV on the lift and vibration frequency of various cross section of bluff bodies, including triangular prisms, pentagonal prisms, elliptical cylinders, and circle-triangular prisms, under different angles of attack (0°, 30°, 60°, 90°). Our study focuses on how the external structure’s motion characteristics affect the internal solid-liquid friction. The simulation results indicate that the periodic lift on the bluff body becomes asymmetric when the cross section shape is asymmetric relative to the direction of flow field motion. Moreover, the vibration frequency increases with the number of edges of the bluff body. In the case of an elliptical cross-section, the vortex in the tail is the weakest when the long axis of the ellipse is parallel to the flow direction, resulting in the lowest lift and highest vibration frequency. We also investigate the influence of the impact height of liquid on the inside wall of the harvester, and find that for various cross section of bluff bodies, the maximum position that the internal liquid level can reach during the shaking process is directly proportional to the frequency of vibration. Finally, we establish a mapping relationship between the output performance of the TENG and FIV to provide a parametric model for optimizing TENG performance.