Harvesting Electric Energy from Waste Vibrations of an Electric Motor Using the Piezoelectric Principle

Abstract

Continuously increased requirement of electricity because of population, higher living standards, and the human race in automation directs the world to use the waste and non-conventional sources of energy. In the present work, unwanted vibration from an electric motor is used to generate electric power with the help of the piezoelectric element. Piezoelectric is a special class of dielectric which generates electric power because of their structural deformation under force and vibration. The piezoelectric material lead zirconate titanate (PZT) is mounted between the electric motor’s base and foundation. The output of the piezoelectric element is measured under three different conditions of the motor operation such as (a) idle running, (b) loaded with a grain-grinding machine, and (c) loaded with a chaff cutter machine. The maximum power generated from diaphragm-type single piezoelectric element was 48.06 µW when the motor was connected to a chaff cutter. To increase power output, two pieces of piezoelectric elements are connected in series and parallel connection. The power output obtained from two piezoelectric materials connected in series and parallel is 102.96 and 151.81 µW, respectively, for the same chaff cutter. Further, the effect of both the connections is studied in laboratory conditions. Results are comparable with field experiments. The electric power generated from waste vibration is sufficient to operate small electronic and microelectromechanical system (MEMS) devices. The proposed technique has the potential to utilize vibrations of big electric motors and machines in industries.