Recycled Plastic Waste-based Triboelectric Nanogenerator Reinforcing Circular Economy

Abstract

The rapid increase in plastic pollution has become dangerous for the future sustainability of our planet. Without proper recycling, thrown away plastic objects usually end up in landfills and remain there for centuries causing irreversible damage to the environment. The energy consumption of ever-increasing portable electronic devices is another challenge for the world. To mitigate these pressing issues, we propose a plastic clear bag based triboelectric nanogenerator (PCB-TENG). Plastic from a discarded clear bag in combination with paper is used to fabricate the proposed PCB-TENG. The fabricated nanogenerator can produce maximum open circuit voltage of 22 V, maximum power of 57 µW and can be used to power small electronic devices. The proposed TENG provides a way to mitigate plastic waste and promote the idea of circular economy.