Enhanced aeroelastic energy harvesting with a beam stiffener

Abstract

In this article, we propose an easy but quite effective method to significantly enhance the power generation capability of an aeroelastic energy harvester. The method is to attach a beam stiffener to the substrate of the harvester, which works as an electromechanical coupling magnifier. It is shown to be effective for all three considered types of harvesters based on galloping, vortex-induced vibration and flutter, leading to a superior performance over the conventional designs without the beam stiffener, with dozens of times the increase in power and an almost 100% increase in the power extraction efficiency yet with comparable or even smaller transverse displacement. Choice guidelines of optimal types of energy harvesters are also suggested based on the given wind situations where the electronic device is located.