Abstract
Inspired by the fluttering of leaves in wind, we propose a novel type of wind energy harvesting device composed of a piezoelectric bimorph beam and flexible extensions. Working principle and advantages of the proposed design are discussed with numerical simulations conducted to investigate the influence of extension shape upon the device performance. Fabricated prototypes are tested in a simple experiment setup to give a description of the actual device performance. Results show that the leaf-inspired sector-shaped flexible extension corresponds to a better device performance. The test for the dual attachment case of the flexible extensions shows unexpected results, showing that the interaction and collision between the two flexible extensions are to be further explored and optimized.
Highlights
Nowadays, the rapid development of robotic technology and the Internet of Things1 signifies the increasing prevalence of various sensors and sensor networks
For specific sensor applications with available surrounding fluid flow, flow induced vibrations have been recognized as excellent energy sources and employed for energy harvesting
We investigate a novel type of aeroelastic energy harvesting device which is composed of a piezoelectric beam and sector-shaped flexible extensions
Summary
The rapid development of robotic technology and the Internet of Things signifies the increasing prevalence of various sensors and sensor networks. The power supply for such sensors has become a critical concern, as the improvement of battery capacity can not keep up with the pace of soaring power consumption of those sensors.2 To this end, extracting energy from the ambient environment to recharge or partially replace the batteries has intrigued many researchers. Some other researchers combined the two mechanisms and introduced the wake galloping based energy harvesting, where the piezoelectric integrated structures are placed in the wake of a bluff body in fluid flow and forced into vibration by the alternative wake. Device configuration design and performance optimization have been the general research focuses In this contribution, we investigate a novel type of aeroelastic energy harvesting device which is composed of a piezoelectric beam and sector-shaped flexible extensions. Results of the experiment validate our design and provide some helpful insights into the design and optimization of aeroelastic energy harvesting devices
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