Experimental validation of axially polarized multilayer piezoelectric composite cylindrical transducers with adjustable multifrequency

The axially polarized multilayer piezoelectric composite cylindrical transducers with adjustable multifrequency capability have been proposed by adjusting the external electric resistance and the ratio of piezoelectric layer numbers between the actuator part and the sensor part, which have promising potential in designing the novel cymbal transducer for underwater sound projector and ultrasonic radiator applications. In the previous studies, the multilayer models were established to guide the design of the transducers with arbitrary layer number, and analyzed the dynamic characteristics theoretically. In this work, an experimental study is performed to validate the theoretical models and predictions. Piezoelectric rings with multiple concentric annular electrodes are designed to characterize the multilayer piezoelectric composite cylindrical transducers. The top surface of the piezoelectric rings is divided into two separate parts. One part is covered by multiple concentric annular electrodes, corresponding to the piezoelectric layers, and the other part is uncovered, corresponding to the elastic layers. Four prototypes are fabricated and each consists of four concentric annular electrodes. The impedance spectra are measured by the impedance analyzer to obtain the resonance and anti-resonance frequencies. Effects of two adjusting methods on the dynamic characteristics are evaluated experimentally. The experimental results basically coincide with the theoretical ones. This comprehensive experimental work assures the feasibility of using axially polarized multilayer piezoelectric composite cylindrical transducers with adjustable multifrequencies and confirms the benefit of the developed theoretical models for guiding the fabrication and optimization of this type of transducers.

3D-Printed Liquid Cell Resonator with Piezoelectric Actuation for In-Line Density-Viscosity Measurements

The in-line monitoring of liquid properties, such as density and viscosity, is a key process in many industrial areas such as agro-food, automotive or biotechnology, requiring real-time automation, low-cost and miniaturization, while maintaining a level of accuracy and resolution comparable to benchtop instruments. In this paper, 3D-printed cuboid-shaped liquid cells featuring a rectangular vibrating plate in one of the sides, actuated by PZT piezoelectric layers, were designed, fabricated and tested. The device was resonantly excited in the 3rd-order roof tile-shaped vibration mode of the plate and validated as a density-viscosity sensor. Furthermore, conditioning circuits were designed to adapt the impedance of the resonator and to cancel parasitic effects. This allowed us to implement a phase-locked loop-based oscillator circuit whose oscillation frequency and voltage amplitude could be calibrated against density and viscosity of the liquid flowing through the cell. To demonstrate the performance, the sensor was calibrated with a set of artificial model solutions of grape must, representing stages of a wine fermentation process. Our results demonstrate the high potential of the low-cost sensor to detect the decrease in sugar and the increase in ethanol concentrations during a grape must fermentation, with a resolution of 10 µg/mL and 3 µPa·s as upper limits for the density and viscosity, respectively.

Hydrocavitation piezoelectric ocean wave energy harvesting

The possibility to convert the ocean wave energy into electrical energy by piezoelectric layers has excited the imagination of ocean wave energy conversion designers for decades owing to its relative robustness (no mechanical parts are needed), the capability to cover large areas and its relative low cost. Unfortunately, the very poor efficiency featured by piezoelectric layers in application of ocean waves has prevented its application even as energy harvester. Here, the possibility to induce hydrocavitation and then working with more higher local pressures for substantial efficiency enhancement is discussed. Utilizing a simplified geometrical and physical model and the linear and potential theory, a first theoretical estimation for the energy enhancement driven by hydrocavitation was calculated. It was found that the power could be enhanced several orders of magnitude which, although still rather low, however, the enhanced electric outputs can be used now as energy harvesters. Additional R&D is encouraged in order to explore the possibilities to harness hydrocavitation to enhance piezoelectric converters.

Response Suppression of FGM Plate Using Piezoelectric Layers Under Parametric Uncertainty Conditions with Markovian Jump Approach

It should be noted that in addition to the geometry, constituent material also affects the strength and rigidity of the cylindrical shell, some factors that determine the transient response are its geometry and the constituent material. The capability of piezoelectric materials to adept their properties in reaction to environmental factors including electricity and loading is one of the major reasons for using in this work. Therefore, in this study, the transient response of a symmetric annular sandwich plate incorporating functionally graded core and piezoelectric layers under external harmonic force and electrical voltage is investigated. The properties of the core material vary along its thickness according to a power law model. The displacement field is represented by the third-order shear deformation theory. With the aid of Hamilton’s principle, the structural equations are obtained in terms of displacement components, then solved using the differential quadrature method. In addition, the time response is evaluated with respect to effective parameters including the internal radius, power law index, core thickness, and external voltage. According to the simulation results, the oscillation amplitude decreases as the internal radius of the plate increases over the desired time interval. Also, a higher index parameter is associated with a wider time response range. Moreover, the stability analysis of a piezoelectric system with [Formula: see text] performance is considered based on the theory of Markovian jump systems. To this end, a Markovian jump state-space model of the piezoelectric system obtained using system identification under the effect of external disturbance is presented. The [Formula: see text] stability index is selected based on a candidate Lyapunov function that leads to a set of linear matrix inequalities for each region. The uncontrolled and controlled transient responses of the coupled system under external disturbance are calculated and compared, indicating the satisfactory controller performance in the presence of external disturbance and jump in the sensor and system dynamics.