Harnessing Food for Energy: Introducing Split Black Gram as a Tribo-positive Material for Eco-Friendly Triboelectric Nanogenerator (TENG)

Current TENG production predominantly employs synthetic materials, posing a significant threat to the environment. This study introduces split black gram (SBG) as a tribo-positive material for TENGs due to its easy availability, cost-effectiveness, and biodegradability for manufacturing eco-friendly TENG. The fabrication process of SBG-TENG is economical, facile, solvent-free, and requires no specialized tools. The SBG-TENG achieved maximum power density of 15.36 µW/cm² at 1 MΩ, with open circuit voltage and short circuit current of 84 V and 28 µA, respectively; comparable with the recently reported studies. To showcase the practical applications of SBG-TENG, it was integrated with LEDs and portable electronic devices efficiently. Furthermore, an autonomous lighting system using SBG TENG allowed wireless control of lights through human stepping on the mat. The proposed food based SBG-TENG not only offers cost-effectiveness but also minimizes its impact on the environment by harnessing sustainable and environment friendly energy through food.