Energy harvesting via naturally induced piezoelectric vibration with a view towards applications

The aim of this project is to model simple devices that transduce kinetic into electric energy by the piezoelectric effect and that could be realised by 3D printing at a low cost. Kinetic energy comes from vibration of operating machinery, dynamically loaded constructions, travelling vehicles (cars, ships, airplanes), flows of wind, streams, rain, and tides. We will focus on devices that can be modelled as beams, plates, or shells with piezoelectric patches, excited by either seismic vibration of the constraints or by the impact of raindrops on their surface (as in monsoon countries). In the first case, we will formulate, or use when in literature, the analytical equations modelling the coupled electro-mechanical response for the various structural elements, solve them by numerical techniques and analyse the effect of a downstream rectifier circuit to optimise the system at least for the simplest structures.