Recycling of diaper wastes for a triboelectric nanogenerator-based weather station
Sayyid Abdul Basith,
Ananthakumar Ramadoss,
Gaurav Khandelwal,
George Jacob,
Arunkumar Chandrasekhar
Affiliations
Sayyid Abdul Basith
Nanosensors and Nanoenergy Lab, Biomedical Instrumentation Lab, Department of Sensor and Biomedical Technology, School of Electronics Engineering, Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632014, India
Ananthakumar Ramadoss
Advanced Research School for Technology & Product Simulation (ARSTPS), School for Advanced Research in Petrochemicals (SARP), Central Institute of Petrochemicals Engineering & Technology (CIPET), T.V.K. Industrial Estate, Guindy, Chennai 600032, India
Gaurav Khandelwal
James Watt School of Engineering, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G12 8QQ, Scotland, UK
George Jacob
Centre for Nanotechnology Research, Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632014, India
Arunkumar Chandrasekhar
Nanosensors and Nanoenergy Lab, Biomedical Instrumentation Lab, Department of Sensor and Biomedical Technology, School of Electronics Engineering, Vellore Institute of Technology, Vellore, Tamil Nadu 632014, India; Corresponding author
Summary: Escalating concerns over waste management and the need for sustainable energy have prompted innovative solutions at the nexus of resource recycling and self-powered applications. This study presents a novel approach to recycling super-absorbing polymer (SAP) gels from waste diapers and discarded baking sheets to fabricate a diaper waste-based triboelectric nanogenerator (DW-TENG). The DW-TENG, resembling a maraca, demonstrated superior electrical performance with a voltage output of 110 V, a current of 9 μA, and a power of 259.15 μW. It was successfully integrated into a self-powered weather station for real-time monitoring of wind speed, humidity, and temperature. This research underscores the dual benefits of waste management and energy generation, representing a promising step toward a circular and sustainable future.
