Metasurface-enhanced multifunctional flag nanogenerator for efficient wind energy harvesting and environmental sensing

Wind energy, as a widely distributed and sustainable renewable resource, plays a crucial role in promoting self-powered wireless sensor networks and wind speed sensing. However, current research predominantly focuses on specific application purposes, lacking comprehensive investigations into integrated solutions. In this paper, a metasurface-enhanced multifunctional flag-type triboelectric nanogenerator (FTENG) is introduced, which enables efficient wind energy harvesting over a wide range of wind speeds, as well as accurate wind speed sensing via the synergistic effect of metasurface treatment and flexible fixation of the flagpole. The metasurface configurations maximally enhance the upstream wake, boosting the energy harvesting power density by 23 times. The FTENG optimized with metasurface design, striking a balance between energy harvesting and sensing capabilities, achieves a linearity of 0.992 over a wind speed range of 2.3-14.4 m/s and a peak power density of 250 mW/m2. Finally, the FTENG demonstrates its excellent ability to light LEDs, power the wireless sensor node (WSN), and serve as a self-powered multifunctional environmental sensor. This work opens up an impactful possibility for developing versatile self-powered electronics by employing metasurface-enhanced wind energy harvesting techniques.