A Magneto-Mechanical Piezoelectric Energy Harvester Designed to Scavenge AC Magnetic Field from Thermal Power Plant with Power-Line Cables

Piezoelectric energy harvesters have attracted much attention because they are crucial in portable industrial applications. Here, we report on a high-power device based on a magneto-mechanical piezoelectric energy harvester to scavenge the AC magnetic field from a power-line cable for industrial applications. The electrical output performance of the harvester (×4 layers) reached an output voltage of 60.8 Vmax, an output power of 215 mWmax (98 mWrms), and a power density of 94.5 mWmax/cm3 (43.5 mWrms/cm3) at an impedance matching of 5 kΩ under a magnetic field of 80 μT. The multilayer energy harvester enables high-output performance, presenting an obvious advantage given this improved level of output power. Finite element simulations were also performed to support the experimental observations. The generator was successfully used to power a wireless sensor network (WSN) for use on an IoT device composed of a temperature sensor in a thermal power station. The result shows that the magneto-mechanical piezoelectric energy harvester (MPEH) demonstrated is capable of meeting the requirements of self-powered monitoring systems under a small magnetic field, and is quite promising for use in actual industrial applications.

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Piezoelectric Performance of a Symmetrical Ring-Shaped Piezoelectric Energy Harvester Using PZT-5H under a Temperature Gradient

Micromachines ◽

10.3390/mi11070640 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 (7) ◽

pp. 640

Author(s):

Nannan Zhou ◽

Rongqi Li ◽

Hongrui Ao ◽

Chuanbing Zhang ◽

Hongyuan Jiang

Keyword(s):

Growth Rate ◽

Output Power ◽

Output Voltage ◽

Electromechanical Coupling ◽

Energy Harvester ◽

Rapid Development ◽

Coupling Model ◽

Output Performance ◽

Piezoelectric Energy ◽

Changing Trend

With the rapid development of microelectronics technology, low-power electronic sensors have been widely applied in many fields, such as Internet of Things, aerospace, and so on. In this paper, a symmetrical ring-shaped piezoelectric energy harvester (SR-PEH) is designed to provide energy for the sensor to detect the ambient temperature. The finite element method is used by utilizing software COMSOL 5.4, and the electromechanical coupling model of the piezoelectric cantilever is established. The output performance equations are proposed; the microelectromechanical system (MEMS) integration process of the SR-PEH, circuit, and sensor is stated; and the changing trend of the output power density is explained from an energy perspective. In the logarithmic coordinate system, the results indicate that the output voltage and output power are approximately linear with the temperature when the resistance is constant. In addition, the growth rate of the output voltage and output power decreases with an increase of resistance under the condition of constant temperature. In addition, with an increase of temperature, the growth rate of the output power is faster than that of the output voltage. Furthermore, resistance has a more dramatic effect on the output voltage, whereas temperature has a more significant effect on the output power. More importantly, the comparison with the conventional cantilever-shaped piezoelectric energy harvester (CC-PEH) shows that the SR-PEH can improve the output performance and broaden the frequency band.

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Complex Impedance Matching for Power Improvement of a Circular Piezoelectric Energy Harvester

Applied Mechanics and Materials ◽

10.4028/www.scientific.net/amm.148-149.169 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 148-149 ◽

pp. 169-172 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Hong Yan Wang ◽

Xiao Biao Shan ◽

Tao Xie

Keyword(s):

Output Power ◽

Power Output ◽

Energy Harvester ◽

Impedance Matching ◽

Maximum Output Power ◽

Complex Impedance ◽

Complex Conjugate ◽

Maximum Output ◽

Piezoelectric Energy ◽

Matching Load

The impedance matching and the optimization of power from a circular piezoelectric energy harvester with a central-attached mass are studied. A finite element model is constructed to analyze the electrical equivalent impedance of the circular piezoelectric energy harvester. Furthermore, the complex conjugate matching load is used to extract the maximum output power of the energy harvester. The power output from complex conjugate matching load is compared with the power output from the resistive matching load and a constant resistance, separately. The results suggest that the complex conjugate matching can result in a significant increase of the output power for all frequencies. The effective bandwidth of the piezoelectric energy harvester is extended significantly.

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Piezoelectric energy harvester scavenging AC magnetic field energy from electric power lines

Sensors and Actuators A Physical ◽

10.1016/j.sna.2012.12.042 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 193 ◽

pp. 59-68 ◽

Cited By ~ 17

Author(s):

Wei He ◽

Ping Li ◽

Yumei Wen ◽

Jitao Zhang ◽

Aichao Yang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Magnetic Field ◽

Electric Power ◽

Energy Harvester ◽

Power Lines ◽

Field Energy ◽

Ac Magnetic Field ◽

Magnetic Field Energy ◽

Piezoelectric Energy

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Analytical Modeling of a Doubly Clamped Flexible Piezoelectric Energy Harvester with Axial Excitation and Its Experimental Characterization

Sensors ◽

10.3390/s21113861 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (11) ◽

pp. 3861

Author(s):

Jie Mei ◽

Qiong Fan ◽

Lijie Li ◽

Dingfang Chen ◽

Lin Xu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Output Power ◽

Power Output ◽

Output Voltage ◽

Energy Harvester ◽

Load Resistance ◽

Engineering Practice ◽

Maximum Output ◽

Widespread Application ◽

Piezoelectric Energy ◽

Axial Excitation

With the rapid development of wearable electronics, novel power solutions are required to adapt to flexible surfaces for widespread applications, thus flexible energy harvesters have been extensively studied for their flexibility and stretchability. However, poor power output and insufficient sensitivity to environmental changes limit its widespread application in engineering practice. A doubly clamped flexible piezoelectric energy harvester (FPEH) with axial excitation is therefore proposed for higher power output in a low-frequency vibration environment. Combining the Euler–Bernoulli beam theory and the D’Alembert principle, the differential dynamic equation of the doubly clamped energy harvester is derived, in which the excitation mode of axial load with pre-deformation is considered. A numerical solution of voltage amplitude and average power is obtained using the Rayleigh–Ritz method. Output power of 22.5 μW at 27.1 Hz, with the optimal load resistance being 1 MΩ, is determined by the frequency sweeping analysis. In order to power electronic devices, the converted alternating electric energy should be rectified into direct current energy. By connecting to the MDA2500 standard rectified electric bridge, a rectified DC output voltage across the 1 MΩ load resistor is characterized to be 2.39 V. For further validation of the mechanical-electrical dynamical model of the doubly clamped flexible piezoelectric energy harvester, its output performances, including both its frequency response and resistance load matching performances, are experimentally characterized. From the experimental results, the maximum output power is 1.38 μW, with a load resistance of 5.7 MΩ at 27 Hz, and the rectified DC output voltage reaches 1.84 V, which shows coincidence with simulation results and is proved to be sufficient for powering LED electronics.

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Power Density Improvement of Piezoelectric Energy Harvesters via a Novel Hybridization Scheme with Electromagnetic Transduction

Micromachines ◽

10.3390/mi12070803 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (7) ◽

pp. 803

Author(s):

Zhongjie Li ◽

Chuanfu Xin ◽

Yan Peng ◽

Min Wang ◽

Jun Luo ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Power Density ◽

Output Power ◽

Energy Harvester ◽

Hybrid Energy ◽

Energy Harvesters ◽

Piezoelectric Patch ◽

Piezoelectric Energy ◽

Electromagnetic Transduction ◽

Self Powered ◽

Power Densities

A novel hybridization scheme is proposed with electromagnetic transduction to improve the power density of piezoelectric energy harvester (PEH) in this paper. Based on the basic cantilever piezoelectric energy harvester (BC-PEH) composed of a mass block, a piezoelectric patch, and a cantilever beam, we replaced the mass block by a magnet array and added a coil array to form the hybrid energy harvester. To enhance the output power of the electromagnetic energy harvester (EMEH), we utilized an alternating magnet array. Then, to compare the power density of the hybrid harvester and BC-PEH, the experiments of output power were conducted. According to the experimental results, the power densities of the hybrid harvester and BC-PEH are, respectively, 3.53 mW/cm3 and 5.14 μW/cm3 under the conditions of 18.6 Hz and 0.3 g. Therefore, the power density of the hybrid harvester is 686 times as high as that of the BC-PEH, which verified the power density improvement of PEH via a hybridization scheme with EMEH. Additionally, the hybrid harvester exhibits better performance for charging capacitors, such as charging a 2.2 mF capacitor to 8 V within 17 s. It is of great significance to further develop self-powered devices.

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Performance analysis of a lever piezoelectric energy harvester for roadway applications

Journal of Intelligent Material Systems and Structures ◽

10.1177/1045389x211001445 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1045389X2110014

Author(s):

Guangya Ding ◽

Hongjun Luo ◽

Jun Wang ◽

Guohui Yuan

Keyword(s):

Output Power ◽

Energy Harvester ◽

Open Circuit ◽

Traffic Load ◽

Energy Harvesters ◽

Speed Sensor ◽

Piezoelectric Energy ◽

Optimal Load ◽

Self Powered ◽

Output Characteristics

A novel lever piezoelectric energy harvester (LPEH) was designed for installation in an actual roadway for energy harvesting. The model incorporates a lever module that amplifies the applied traffic load and transmits it to the piezoelectric ceramic. To observe the piezoelectric growth benefits of the optimized LPEH structure, the output characteristics and durability of two energy harvesters, the LPEH and a piezoelectric energy harvester (PEH) without a lever, were measured and compared by carrying out piezoelectric performance tests and traffic model experiments. Under the same loading condition, the open circuit voltages of the LPEH and PEH were 20.6 and 11.7 V, respectively, which represents a 76% voltage increase for the LPEH compared to the PEH. The output power of the LPEH was 21.51 mW at the optimal load, which was three times higher than that of the PEH (7.45 mW). The output power was linearly dependent on frequency and load, implying the potential application of the module as a self-powered speed sensor. When tested during 300,000 loading cycles, the LPEH still exhibited stable structural performance and durability.

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Piezoelectric Energy Harvesting with an Ultrasonic Vibration Source

Actuators ◽

10.3390/act8010008 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 8 (1) ◽

pp. 8

Author(s):

Tao Li ◽

Pooi Lee

Keyword(s):

Energy Harvesting ◽

High Power ◽

High Frequency ◽

Energy Harvester ◽

Impedance Matching ◽

Low Frequency ◽

Vibration Source ◽

Piezoelectric Energy ◽

Power Ultrasonic ◽

Ultrasonic Cutting

A piezoelectric energy harvester was developed in this paper. It is actuated by the vibration leakage from the nodal position of a high-power ultrasonic cutting transducer. The harvester was excited at a low displacement amplitude (0.73 µmpp). However, its operation frequency is quite high and reaches the ultrasonic range (24.4 kHz). Compared with another low frequency harvester (66 Hz), both theoretical and experimental results proved that the advantages of this high frequency harvester include (i) high current generation capability (up to 20 mApp compared to 1.3 mApp of the 66 Hz transducer) and (ii) low impedance matching resistance (500 Ω in contrast to 50 kΩ of the 66 Hz transducer). This energy harvester can be applied either in sensing, or vibration controlling, or simply energy harvesting in a high-power ultrasonic system.

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Theoretical Analysis and General Characteristics for Nonlinear Vibration Energy Harvesters

Journal of Physics D Applied Physics ◽

10.1088/1361-6463/ac453d ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Hanxiao Wu ◽

Zhi Tao ◽

Haiwang Li ◽

Tiantong Xu ◽

Wenbin Wang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Output Power ◽

Numerical Study ◽

Power Line ◽

Energy Harvesters ◽

Output Performance ◽

Equivalent Time ◽

Time Average ◽

Mechanical Damping ◽

Limit Power ◽

Nonlinear Energy

Abstract In this paper, we present a systematic theoretical and numerical study of the output performance of nonlinear energy harvesters. The general analytical expression of output power for systems with different combinations of nonlinear stiffness and nonlinear damping, as well as symmetrical and asymmetrical systems, have been derived based on harmonic balance method, observing compliance with numerical results. We theoretically prove that there is a limit power for all nonlinear systems which is determined exclusively by the vibrator mass, excitation acceleration, and mechanical damping. The results also indicate that for symmetrical stiffness systems, the asymmetrical damping components have no effect on the output performance. Additionally, we derived semi-analytical solutions of the matching loads and numerically investigated the influence of nonlinear coefficients on the output power with matched load. When the load matches device parameters and is much larger than the internal resistance, the equivalent time-average damping is equal to the mechanical damping. Although the matching load and output power vary with the nonlinear coefficients, the normalized power and matching resistance ratio follow a power function, named matching power line, which is independent of the structural parameters. With the improvement of the equivalent time-average short-circuit damping in the vibration range, the normalized power moves to the right end of the matching power line, and the output power approach to the limit power. These conclusions provide general characteristics of nonlinear energy harvesters, which can be used to guide the design and optimization of energy harvesters.

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