Research and development of a new combination of piezo-thermoelectric energy harvester systems from roadways

Abstract

Due to the problems associated with fossil fuels, scientists and governments are investigating alternative energy sources. In recent decades, there has been an increase in interest in initiatives involving the collection of clean, limitless energy. This paper focuses on two renewable energy harvesting combination technologies: mechanical vibration utilizing piezoelectric technology and thermal sources utilizing thermoelectric technology. Existing scientific literature proposes various techniques for producing and modeling each system individually. This study proposes a novel piezo-thermoelectric pavement model with piezo-thermoelectric coupling. Due to the lack of typical experimentation in the scientific literature, a new laboratory experimental prototype proposes to reproduce artificially and simultaneously heat harvesting on the artificial road surface and mechanical vibration caused by passing vehicles. Testing the laboratory-developed prototype has determined the efficacy of the piezo-thermoelectric coupling electronic model. This study demonstrated that a hybrid piezo-thermoelectric system is more suitable for road pavement applications than a piezo-thermoelectric coupling system. A hybrid combination system can continue to produce energy even if one of the energy sources is unavailable or malfunctioning, whereas a coupling combination system cannot. In laboratory testing, the combined piezo-thermoelectric harvester proposed could generate up to 1.75 μW without optimizing the materials or power generation. This innovative study demonstrates the feasibility and applicability of combining thermoelectric and piezoelectric technology to harvest energy from road surfaces.