Energy Conversion and Management, Vol.171, 1405-1415, 2018
Experimental investigation of energy harvesting from swirling flows using a piezoelectric film transducer
This paper presents the results of energy harvesting experiments with piezoelectric film transducers placed in swirling air flow. The turbulent flow was created by a centrifugal fan -swirler plate arrangement. The air flow field created had a Reynolds number of 15,000-130,000 and a swirl number of 0.3-0.4. The mounting mode of the piezoelectric film transducer allows for varying the position and orientation of the piezoelectric transducer to optimize energy harvesting. First, the output of the piezo-film was monitored by an oscilloscope. Static pressure was concurrently measured using a fast piezo-resistive pressure sensor. Fast Fourier Transformation (FFT) was performed to the output signals in order to understand the interaction of the piezo-film with the turbulent eddies. The mechanical vibration modes were recorded by a camera. Finally, a voltage rectifying circuit board was connected to the piezo-film transducer and the voltage output was monitored in various fan frequencies. The average power output was monitored by measuring the voltage across a load resistance. A configuration of the piezo-film with a rectangular plastic attachment was also tested in order to decrease the eigenfrequency of the piezo-film. The longer piezo-film demonstrated shorter harvesting time cycle and thus increased power output. The optimum performance of the harvester was achieved at the lower mean flow velocities and reached the levels of 3 mu W.