Performance evaluation of a piezoelectric energy harvester based on flag-flutter

Abstract

In the last few decades, piezoelectric (PZT) materials have played a vital role in the aerospace industry because of their energy harvesting capability. PZT energy harvesters (PEH) absorb the energy from an operational environment and can transform it into useful energy to drive nano/micro-electronic components. In this research work, a PEH based on the flag-flutter mechanism is presented. This mechanism is based on fluid-structure interaction (FSI). The flag is subjected to the axial airflow in the subsonic wind tunnel. The performance evaluation of the harvester and aeroelastic analysis is investigated numerically and experimentally. A novel solution is presented to extract energy from Limit Cycle Oscillations (LCOs) phenomenon by means of PZT transduction. The PZT patch absorbs the flow-induced structural vibrations and transforms it into electrical energy. Furthermore, the optimal resistance and length of the flag is predicted to maximize the energy harvesting. Different configurations of flag i.e., with Aluminium (Al) patch and PZT patch for flutter mode vibration mode are studied numerically and experimentally. The bifurcation diagram is constructed for the experimental campaign for the flutter instability of a cantilevered flag in subsonic wind-tunnel. Moreover, the flutter boundary conditions are analysed for reduced critical velocity and frequency. The designed PZT energy harvester via flag-flutter mechanism is suitable for energy harvesting in aerospace engineering applications to drive wireless sensors. The maximum output power that can be generated from the designed harvester is 6.72 mW and the optimal resistance is predicted to be 0.33 MΩ.