Energy Harvesting Using Piezoceramics

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vainatey Kulkarni ◽  
Ridha Ben Mrad ◽  
Tamer El-Diraby ◽  
Eswar Prasad
Keyword(s):  
Energy Harvesting ◽  
Environmental Control ◽  
Electric Energy ◽  
Sensor Arrays ◽  
Electrical Energy ◽  
Ambient Vibration ◽  
Energy Harvesters ◽  
Aerospace Applications ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Materials Used

Energy harvesting devices are growing in popularity for their ability to capture the ambient energy surrounding a system and convert it into usable electrical energy. With an increasing demand for portable electronics and an increased interest in the implementation of arrays of wireless sensors in a number of sectors such as health monitoring in civil infrastructure, MEMS sensor arrays for automotive and aerospace applications, and environmental control, there is a surge in research in the area of power harvesting. One such method of implementing a harvesting system is to use ambient vibration in conjunction with a piezoelectric device to generate electric energy based on the direct piezoelectric effect. This paper presents an overview of recent developments in piezoelectric based energy harvesters for microsystems and nanosystems applications along the various materials used for energy harvesting. The paper also tests two common energy harvester designs to observe their difference in operation.

Energy Harvesting Characteristics of Conical Shells

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Li ◽  
S. D. Hu ◽  
H. S. Tzou
Keyword(s):  
Energy Harvesting ◽  
Conical Shell ◽  
Energy Harvester ◽  
Electric Energy ◽  
Electrical Energy ◽  
Open Circuit ◽  
Ambient Vibration ◽  
Circular Membrane ◽  
Shell Surface ◽  
Piezoelectric Energy

Piezoelectric energy harvesting has experienced significant growth over the past few years. Various harvesting structures have been proposed to convert ambient vibration energies to electrical energy. However, these harvester’s base structures are mostly beams and some plates. Shells have great potential to harvest more energy. This study aims to evaluate a piezoelectric coupled conical shell based energy harvester system. Piezoelectric patches are laminated on the conical shell surface to convert vibration energy to electric energy. An open-circuit output voltage of the conical energy harvester is derived based on the thin-shell theory and the Donnel-Mushtari-Valsov theory. The open-circuit voltage and its derived energy consists of four components respectively resulting from the meridional and circular membrane strains, as well as the meridional and circular bending strains. Reducing the surface of the harvester to infinite small gives the spatial energy distribution on the shell surface. Then, the distributed modal energy harvesting characteristics of the proposed PVDF/conical shell harvester are evaluated in case studies. The results show that, for each mode with unit modal amplitude, the distribution depends on the mode shape, harvester location, and geometric parameters. The regions with high strain outputs yield higher modal energies. Accordingly, optimal locations for the PVDF harvester can be defined. Also, when modal amplitudes are specified, the overall energy of the conical shell harvester can be calculated.

Evaluation of Ring-Type Energy Harvesters

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. D. Hu ◽  
H. Li ◽  
H. S. Tzou
Keyword(s):  
Energy Harvesting ◽  
Piezoelectric Layer ◽  
Piezoelectric Materials ◽  
Electrical Energy ◽  
Basic Structure ◽  
Open Circuit ◽  
Ambient Vibration ◽  
Practical Applications ◽  
Energy Harvesters ◽  
Segment Size

Piezoelectric materials can be used as electromechanical conversion mechanisms to transfer ambient vibration into electrical energy to power electronic devices. In this study, an elastic ring laminated with a piezoelectric layer on the inner surface is utilized as the basic structure for energy harvesting. The piezoelectric layer is uniformly segmented into several energy harvesting patches for practical applications. The generated electrical energy resulting from modal voltages is analyzed under the open-circuit condition. Two modal energy generations are evaluated: one is the energy induced by the membrane oscillation and the other is the energy induced by the bending oscillation. For practical design applications, energy generations are evaluated with respect to ring radius, piezoelectric layer thickness, ring thickness and segment size. The maximal energy of all harvester patches on the ring is calculated to determine the optimal patch locations with respect to various ring modes. By summing up energies generated from all harvesters on the ring, the overall energy is also evaluated Based on the normalizations and assumptions of parameters, results indicate that the larger the segment size is, the less the energy can be generated.

Multimodal pizza-shaped piezoelectric vibration-based energy harvesters

2021 ◽  
pp. 1045389X2110069
Author(s):  
Virgilio J Caetano ◽  
Marcelo A Savi
Keyword(s):  
Energy Harvesting ◽  
Frequency Spectrum ◽  
Optimization Procedure ◽  
Single Mode ◽  
Ambient Vibration ◽  
Vibration Source ◽  
Element Analysis ◽  
Energy Harvesters ◽  
Piezoelectric Energy ◽  
Harvesting Systems

Energy harvesting from ambient vibration through piezoelectric devices has received a lot of attention in recent years from both academia and industry. One of the main challenges is to develop devices capable of adapting to diverse sources of environmental excitation, being able to efficiently operate over a broadband frequency spectrum. This work proposes a novel multimodal design of a piezoelectric energy harvesting system to harness energy from a wideband ambient vibration source. Circular-shaped and pizza-shaped designs are employed as candidates for the device, comparing their performance with classical beam-shaped devices. Finite element analysis is employed to model system dynamics using ANSYS Workbench. An optimization procedure is applied to the system aiming to seek a configuration that can extract energy from a broader frequency spectrum and maximize its output power. A comparative analysis with conventional energy harvesting systems is performed. Numerical simulations are carried out to investigate the harvester performances under harmonic and random excitations. Results show that the proposed multimodal harvester has potential to harness energy from broadband ambient vibration sources presenting performance advantages in comparison to conventional single-mode energy harvesters.

scholarly journals Analysis of Double Elastic Steel Wind Driven Magneto-Electric Vibration Energy Harvesting System

Sensors ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (21) ◽  
pp. 7364
Author(s):  
Yi-Ren Wang ◽  
Ming-Ching Chu
Keyword(s):  
Energy Harvesting ◽  
Electric Energy ◽  
Elastic Beam ◽  
Electrical Energy ◽  
Vibration Energy ◽  
Vibration Energy Harvesting ◽  
Concentrated Load ◽  
Single Beam ◽  
Piezoelectric Patch ◽  
Energy Harvesting System

This research proposes an energy harvesting system that collects the downward airflow from a helicopter or a multi-axis unmanned rotary-wing aircraft and uses this wind force to drive the magnet to rotate, generating repulsive force, which causes the double elastic steel system to slap each other and vibrate periodically in order to generate more electricity than the traditional energy harvesting system. The design concept of the vibration mechanism in this study is to allow the elastic steel carrying the magnet to slap another elastic steel carrying the piezoelectric patch to form a set of double elastic steel vibration energy harvesting (DES VEH) systems. The theoretical DES VEH mechanism of this research is composed of a pair of cantilever beams, with magnets attached to the free end of one beam, and PZT attached to the other beam. This study analyzes the single beam system first. The MOMS method is applied to analyze the frequency response of this nonlinear system theoretically, then combines the piezoelectric patch and the magneto-electric coupling device with this nonlinear elastic beam to analyze the benefits of the system’s converted electrical energy. In the theoretical study of the DES VEH system, the slapping force between the two elastic beams was considered as a concentrated load on each of the beams. Furthermore, both SES and DES VEH systems are studied and correlated. Finally, the experimental data and theoretical results are compared to verify the feasibility and correctness of the theory. It is proven that this DES VEH system can not only obtain the electric energy from the traditional SES VEH system but also obtain the extra electric energy of the steel vibration subjected to the slapping force, which generates optimal power to the greatest extent.

Analytical Electromechanical Model of Cantilevered Bi-Stable Composites for Broadband Energy Harvesting

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andres F. Arrieta ◽  
Tommaso Delpero ◽  
Paolo Ermanni
Keyword(s):  
Energy Harvesting ◽  
Large Amplitude ◽  
Wide Band ◽  
Electrical Energy ◽  
Ambient Vibration ◽  
Mode Shapes ◽  
Rapid Reduction ◽  
Electromechanical Model ◽  
Response Characteristics ◽  
Good Agreement

Vibration based energy harvesting has received extensive attention in the engineering community for the past decade thanks to its potential for autonomous powering small electronic devices. For this purpose, linear electromechanical devices converting mechanical to useful electrical energy have been extensively investigated. Such systems operate optimally when excited close to or at resonance, however, for these lightly damped structures small variations in the ambient vibration frequency results in a rapid reduction of performance. The idea to use nonlinearity to obtain large amplitude response in a wider frequency range, has shown the potential for achieving so called broadband energy harvesting. An interesting type of nonlinear structures exhibiting the desired broadband response characteristics are bi-stable composites. The bi-stable nature of these composites allows for designing several ranges of wide band large amplitude oscillations, from which high power can be harvested. In this paper, an analytical electromechanical model of cantilevered piezoelectric bi-stable composites for broadband harvesting is presented. The model allows to calculate the modal characteristics, such as natural frequencies and mode shapes, providing a tool for the design of bi-stable composites as harvesting devices. The generalised coupling coefficient is used to select the positioning of piezoelectric elements on the composites for maximising the conversion energy. The modal response of a test specimen is obtained and compared to theoretical results showing good agreement, thus validating the model.

Topology Optimization of Piezoelectric Energy Harvesting Devices Subjected to Stochastic Excitation

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zheqi Lin ◽  
Hae Chang Gea ◽  
Shutian Liu
Keyword(s):  
Topology Optimization ◽  
Energy Harvesting ◽  
Electrical Energy ◽  
Ambient Vibration ◽  
Piezoelectric Energy Harvesting ◽  
The Past ◽  
Piezoelectric Energy ◽  
Random Responses ◽  
Pseudo Excitation ◽  
Energy Harvesting Devices

Converting ambient vibration energy into electrical energy using piezoelectric energy harvester has attracted much interest in the past decades. In this paper, topology optimization is applied to design the optimal layout of the piezoelectric energy harvesting devices. The objective function is defined as to maximize the energy harvesting performance over a range of ambient vibration frequencies. Pseudo excitation method (PEM) is applied to analyze structural stationary random responses. Sensitivity analysis is derived by the adjoint method. Numerical examples are presented to demonstrate the validity of the proposed approach.

Resonant Frequency Tuning Strategies for Vibration-Based Energy Harvesters

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lin Dong ◽  
Frank T. Fisher
Keyword(s):  
Energy Harvesting ◽  
Resonant Frequency ◽  
Energy Harvester ◽  
Frequency Tuning ◽  
Electrical Energy ◽  
Mechanical Stretch ◽  
Applied Bias Voltage ◽  
Energy Harvesters ◽  
Frequency Matching ◽  
Low Levels

Vibration-based energy harvesting has been widely investigated to as a means to generate low levels of electrical energy for applications such as wireless sensor networks. However, due to the fact that vibration from the environment is typically random and varies with different magnitudes and frequencies, it is a challenge to implement frequency matching in order to maximize the power output of the energy harvester with a wider frequency bandwidth for applications where there is a time-dependent, varying source frequency. Possible solutions of frequency matching include widening the bandwidth of the energy harvesters themselves in order to implement frequency matching and to perform resonance-based tuning approach, the latter of which shows the most promise to implement a frequency matching design. Here three tuning strategies are discussed. First a two-dimensional resonant frequency tuning technique for the cantilever-geometry energy harvesting device which extended previous 1D tuning approaches was developed. This 2D approach could be used in applications where space constraints impact the available design space of the energy harvester. In addition, two novel resonant frequency tuning approaches (tuning via mechanical stretch and tuning via applied bias voltage, respectively) for electroactive polymer (EAP) membrane-based geometry energy harvesters was proposed, such that the resulting changes in membrane tension were used to tune the device for applications targeting variable ambient frequency environments.

scholarly journals Recent Developments in Solar Energy-Harvesting Technologies for Building Integration and Distributed Energy Generation

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mikhail Vasiliev ◽  
Mohammad Nur-E-Alam ◽  
Kamal Alameh
Keyword(s):  
Energy Harvesting ◽  
Solar Energy ◽  
Electric Energy ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Future Application ◽  
Energy Capture ◽  
Solar Energy Harvesting ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Building Wall ◽  
Distributed Energy Generation

We present a review of the current state of the field for a rapidly evolving group of technologies related to solar energy harvesting in built environments. In particular, we focus on recent achievements in enabling the widespread distributed generation of electric energy assisted by energy capture in semi-transparent or even optically clear glazing systems and building wall areas. Whilst concentrating on the cutting-edge recent results achieved in the integration of traditional photovoltaic device types into novel concentrator-type windows and glazings, we compare the main performance characteristics reported with these achievable using more conventional (opaque or semi-transparent) solar cell technologies. A critical overview of the current status and future application potential of multiple existing and emergent energy harvesting technologies for building integration is provided.

High Voltage Energy Harvesting From Embedded PVDF Harvester Inspired From Metamaterial Design

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammadsadegh Saadatzi ◽  
Mohammad Nasser Saadatzi ◽  
Sourav Banerjee
Keyword(s):  
Energy Harvesting ◽  
Structural Design ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Phononic Crystal ◽  
Electrical Potential ◽  
Electrical Energy ◽  
Unit Cell ◽  
Energy Harvesters ◽  
Resonance Frequencies ◽  
Specific Material

Abstract In the current study, a novel multi-frequency, vibration-based Energy Harvester (EH) is proposed, numerically verified, and experimentally validated. The structural design of the proposed EH is inspired from an inner-ear, snail-shaped structure. In the past decade, scavenging power from environmental sources of vibration has attracted a lot of researchers to the field of energy harvesting. High demands for cleaner and renewable energy sources, limited sources of electrical energy, high depletion rates of nonrenewable sources of energy, and environmental concerns have urged researchers to investigate new structures called Metamaterial energy harvesters to harness electrical potential. The proposed EH is a metamaterial structure which has a Polyvinylidene Difluoride (PVDF) structure incapsulated in an aluminum frame and follows the physics of a mass-in-mass Phononic crystal structure. The PVDF snail-shaped structure is encapsulated inside a silicone matrix with a specific material property. This EH reacts to the environmental vibrations and the encapsulating silicone entraps the kinetic energy within its structure. The EH unit cell behaves as a negative mass in the vicinity of its resonance frequencies. In this paper, the dynamic behavior of the proposed EH is numerically modeled in COMSOL Multiphysics and, subsequently, validated experimentally using a unit cell fabricated in-house.

Bistable Energy Harvesting From Human Motion

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei Wang ◽  
Junyi Cao ◽  
Shengxi Zhou ◽  
Jing Lin
Keyword(s):  
Energy Harvesting ◽  
Human Motion ◽  
Ambient Vibration ◽  
Energy Output ◽  
Potential Well ◽  
Energy Devices ◽  
Energy Harvesters ◽  
Cantilever Structure ◽  
Well Function ◽  
Nonlinear Energy

Recently, the power supply for portable electronic devices using the electricity extracted from human motion and ambient vibrations has received considerable attention from multidiscipline field. Among many energy converting mechanisms, the ease miniaturization of piezoelectric cantilever structure propels many research groups to investigate the potential of efficient energy harvesting from ambient vibration using resonant phenomena. However, the incapability of traditional linear energy harvesting from low frequency or varying frequency vibrations has become an open issue. This paper investigates the feasibility of nonlinear energy harvesters with different bistable potential well functions in harvesting energy from walking and running vibration. The portable nonlinear energy harvesting device and its measurement system has been established to obtain the model parameter and excitation signal from human motion. The electromechanical model for bistable energy harvesters with different nonlinear restoring force is derived from theoretical method and experimental data. Numerical investigation under human walking and running vibrations shows that large amplitude interwell motion are easily achieved to improve energy output while the proper potential well function of bistable oscillators is designed. The comparative experiments for nonlinear energy devices with different potential well function are performed. The history and frequency spectrum of output voltage demonstrate the effectiveness of numerical simulation and the clear potential of bistable energy harvesting from human motion by means of appropriate potential function design.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document