A novel road energy harvesting system based on a spatial double V-shaped mechanism for near-zero-energy toll stations on expressways

Abstract

To replace traditional energy sources, researchers are exploring renewable energy technologies. With the continued development of cities, the number of expressways and toll stations in China has increased rapidly. Meanwhile, the expressway toll stations have great potential for kinetic energy scavenging for electronic accessories. This paper presents a novel road energy harvesting system (REHS) based on a spatial double V-shaped mechanism for self-powering small electronic accessories in near-zero-energy toll stations on expressways. The proposed system can be installed at the entrances and exits of expressway near-zero-energy toll stations, to convert the wasted kinetic energy of moving vehicles into electric power. The suggested system comprises four modules: speed bump module, transmission module, generator module and power storage module. As the energy input, the speed bump module captures the kinetic energy of moving vehicles. The transmission module contains a spatial double V-shaped mechanism to transform the vertical linear motion into unidirectional rotary motion. In the energy storage module, the supercapacitors are used to store electrical energy. The experimental analyses were performed using mechanical testing and sensing machine (MTS) and a maximum output voltage of 12.64 V was recorded at a square wave based input force of 500 N and 0.1 Hz frequency. The overall potential of power generation/year for all mainline toll stations was estimated and found that China has 219.66 MW h of potential only from road-based toll stations. The prolific findings prove the feasibility and practicality of the proposed REHS for near-zero-energy toll stations on expressways.