Corn Starch-Derived Gel for High-Performance Triboelectric Nanogenerators

Starch is a material of wide research interest across various disciplines to understand its nature under different circumstances. Herein, we report corn starch gel as a tribo material whose incorporation into silicone foam can enhance the electrical output of a triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) over 100% compared to the output of a TENG developed using intrinsic silicone foam. The study is carried out by varying the incorporation of different mass ratios of corn starch gel into silicone foam and prepared a starch gel composite (SGC). The composite material SGC with a mass ratio of 1:1.02 of corn starch gel and silicone foam produces the highest output voltage of ∼280 V compared to the output voltage of 132 V of a TENG developed using intrinsic silicone foam. It delivers a output current of 6.9 μA and a peak power of 897 μW corresponding to a power density of 996 mW/m2. Furthermore, the potential of real-time applications of TENG using SGC (c-TENG) has been demonstrated through powering up of light-emitting diodes, charging some commercial capacitors, and healthcare sensing applications. The device is highly stable, as over 15,000 cycles, it gives a constant output voltage of ∼280 V. The enhanced electrical output and stability of the device opens up the possibility of further research in the field of TENG using a composite material of starch for high-voltage self-powered applications.