Energy-generating cloth could replace batteries in wearable devices

 In the journal ACS Nano, scientists report the first durable, flexible cloth that harnesses human motion to generate energy. It can also self-charge batteries or supercapacitors without an external power source and make new commercial and medical applications possible.

Sang-Woo Kim and colleagues point out that the potential of wearable electronics extends far beyond the flashy and convenient. Small, lightweight devices could play life-changing roles as robotic skin or in other biomedical applications. But to maximize their utility, such electronics need an ultra-flexible, long-lasting energy source that is seamlessly incorporated into the device’s design. For a possible solution, Kim’s team turned to the emerging technology of “triboelectric nanogenerators,” or TNGs, which harvest energy from everyday motion.

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