Harvesting Energy Wasted from Footsteps Using Piezoelectric Technology to Utilize in Low-Power Applications: A Conceptual Approach and Design

Abstract

The Earth, as proved by extensive scientific research, is at a critical juncture. With our rising Carbon Footprint and depletion of resources, the long-term future of the planet is in danger of an energy crisis and massive environmental changes. One of the primary culprits for this predicament is the burning of non- renewable sources of energy, which are drying up and results in massive carbon emissions. As a result, the world has been turning to renewable sources for a solution. Some of the most popular solutions are hydro, solar and wind power. The need for humankind to step up in order to prevent the damage to and save the environment is becoming more prominent, every second, because, it is the only solution available. Every day, billions of people place billions of footprints everywhere in the world, at their homes, transportation hubs, shopping malls: the list goes on. One of the facts that has been neglected is that these footsteps are a waste of potentially billions of mega joules of energy. This paper will describe a conceptual approach and a design on how to convert this wasted kinetic energy into electrical energy, providing a source of inexpensive electricity that can be utilized in low-power applications in our daily lives, as a solution to the rising carbon footprint of the Earth.