Designing Raindrop Energy Harvester Using PZT Piezoelectric Transducer

Abstract

As an ecological source of renewable energy, the available kinetic energy of rainfall is not trifling, especially in tropical countries at the equators. The research on the use of piezoelectric transducers to harvest raindrop kinetic energy is gaining more and more attention recently. According to the Malaysian Meteorological Department (MMD), the annual average rainfall is 2,420 mm for Peninsular Malaysia, 2,630 mm for Sabah, and 3,830 mm for Sarawak. With annual average rainfall in Malaysia, this project is one of the solutions without wasting energy sources. Raindrops are a source of kinetic energy that can be utilised without wasting the source. To utilize the rainfall, using piezoelectric as an energy harvester can convert kinetic energy into electrical energy. Based on the problem highlighted, this research focuses on using Lead Zirconate Titanate (PZT) piezoelectric mechanism which can harvest kinetic energy from raindrops and convert the kinetic energy into electrical energy. Other than that, this research also investigates the simulated analysis on the best type of alternating current to direct current (AC-DC) harvesting circuit to generate highly efficient power amplification and evaluate the performance of the whole raindrop energy harvester system. With energy generated, it will provide enough electric energy and then be applied for low voltage electronic devices. An experimental result shows that piezoelectric in a series-parallel configuration combination can produce an output voltage of 0.236 V and 0.023 mA for output current.