Low-frequency and broadband vibration energy harvester driven by mechanical impact based on layer-separated piezoelectric beam

Vibration energy harvesting is to transform the ambient mechanical energy to electricity. How to reduce the resonance frequency and improve the conversion efficiency is very important. In this paper, a layer-separated piezoelectric cantilever beam is proposed for the vibration energy harvester(VEH) for low-frequency and wide-bandwidth operation, which can transform the mechanical impact energy to electric energy. First,the electromechanical coupling equation is obtained by the Euler-Bernoulli beam theory.Based on the average method, the approximate analytical solution is derived and the voltage response is obtained. Furthermore, the physical prototype is fabricated, and the vibration experiment is conducted to validate the theoretical principle. The experimental results show that the maximum power of 0.445 μW of the layer-separated VEH is about3.11 times higher than that of the non-impact harvester when the excitation acceleration is 0.2 g. The operating frequency bandwidth can be widened by increasing the stiffness of the fundamental layer and decreasing the gap distance of the system. But the increasing of operating frequency bandwidth comes at the cost of reducing peak voltage. The theoretical simulation and the experimental results demonstrate good agreement which indicates that the proposed impact-driving VEH device has advantages for low-frequency and wide-bandwidth. The high performance provides great prospect to scavenge the vibration energy in environment.

Dynamic and electrical responses of a curved sandwich beam with glass reinforced laminate layers and a pliable core in the presence of a piezoelectric layer under low-velocity impact

The dynamic responses and generated voltage in a curved sandwich beam with glass reinforced laminate(GRL)layers and a pliable core in the presence of a piezoelectric layer under low-velocity impact(LVI)are investigated.The current study aims to carry out a dynamic analysis on the sandwich beam when the impactor hits the top face sheet with an initial velocity.For the layer analysis,the high-order shear deformation theory(HSDT)and Frostig's second model for the displacement fields of the core layer are used.The classical non-adhesive elastic contact theory and Hunter's principle are used to calculate the dynamic responses in terms of time.In order to validate the analytical method,the outcomes of the current investigation are compared with those gained by the experimental tests carried out by other researchers for a rectangular composite plate subject to the LVI.Finite element(FE)simulations are conducted by means of the ABAQUS software.The effects of the parameters such as foam modulus,layer material,fiber angle,impactor mass,and its velocity on the generated voltage are reviewed.

Nonlinear analysis on electrical properties in a bended composite piezoelectric semiconductor beam

In this paper,the interactions between the transverse loads and the electrical field quantities are investigated based on the nonlinear constitutive relation.By considering a composite beam consisting of a piezoelectric semiconductor and elastic layers,the nonlinear model is established based on the phenomenological theory and Euler’s beam theory.Furthermore,an iteration procedure based on the differential quadrature method(DQM)is developed to solve the nonlinear governing equations.Before analysis,the convergence and correctness are surveyed.It is found that the convergence of the proposed iteration is fast.Then,the transverse pressure induced electrical field quantities are investigated in detail.From the calculated results,it can be found that the consideration of nonlinear constitutive relation is necessary for a beam undergoing a large load.Compared with the linear results,the consideration of the nonlinear constitutive relation breaks the symmetry for the electric potential,the electric field,and the perturbation carrier density,and has little influence on the electric displacement.Furthermore,the non-uniform pressures are considered.The results show that the distributions of the electric field quantities are sensitively altered.It indicates that the electrical properties can be manipulated with the design of different transverse loads.The conclusions in this paper could be the guidance on designing and manufacturing electronic devices accurately.

Free vibration of functionally graded material beams with surface-bonded piezoelectric layers in thermal environment

Free vibration of statically thermal postbuckled functionally graded material （FGM） beams with surface-bonded piezoelectric layers subject to both temperature rise and voltage is studied. By accurately considering the axial extension and based on the Euler-Bernoulli beam theory, geometrically nonlinear dynamic governing equations for FGM beams with surface-bonded piezoelectric layers subject to thermo-electro- mechanical loadings are formulated. It is assumed that the material properties of the middle FGM layer vary continuously as a power law function of the thickness coordinate, and the piezoelectric layers are isotropic and homogenous. By assuming that the amplitude of the beam vibration is small and its response is harmonic, the above mentioned non-linear partial differential equations are reduced to two sets of coupled ordinary differential equations. One is for the postbuckling, and the other is for the linear vibration of the beam superimposed upon the postbuckled configuration. Using a shooting method to solve the two sets of ordinary differential equations with fixed-fixed boundary conditions numerically, the response of postbuckling and free vibration in the vicinity of the postbuckled configuration of the beam with fixed-fixed ends and subject to transversely nonuniform heating and uniform electric field is obtained. Thermo-electric postbuckling equilibrium paths and characteristic curves of the first three natural frequencies versus the temperature, the electricity, and the material gradient parameters are plotted. It is found that the three lowest frequencies of the prebuckled beam decrease with the increase of the temperature, but those of a buckled beam increase monotonically with the temperature rise. The results also show that the tensional force produced in the piezoelectric layers by the voltage can efficiently increase the critical buckling temperature and the natural frequency.

Modeling and analysis of piezoelectric beam with periodically variable cross-sections for vibration energy harvesting

A bimorph piezoelectric beam with periodically variable cross-sections is used for the vibration energy harvesting. The effects of two geometrical parameters on the first band gap of this periodic beam are investigated by the generalized differential quadrature rule （GDQR） method. The GDQR method is also used to calculate the forced vibration response of the beam and voltage of each piezoelectric layer when the beam is subject to a sinusoidal base excitation. Results obtained from the analytical method are compared with those obtained from the finite element simulation with ANSYS, and good agreement is found. The voltage output of this periodic beam over its first band gap is calculated and compared with the voltage output of the uniform piezoelectric beam. It is concluded that this periodic beam has three advantages over the uniform piezoelectric beam, i.e., generating more voltage outputs over a wide frequency range, absorbing vibration, and being less weight.

Active vibration control of functionally graded beams with piezoelectric layers based on higher order shear deformation theory

This paper reports on a study of active vibration control of functionally graded beams with upper and lower surface-bonded piezoelectric layers. The model is based on higher-order shear deformation theory and implemented using the finite element method （FEM）. The proprieties of the functionally graded beam （FGB） are graded along the thickness direction. The piezoelectric actuator provides a damping effect on the FGB by means of a velocity feedback control algorithm. A Matlab program has been developed for the FGB model and compared with ANSYS APDL. Using Newmark＇s method numerical solutions are obtained for the dynamic equations of FGB with piezoelectric layers. Numerical results show the effects of the constituent volume fraction and the influence the feedback control gain on the frequency and dynamic response of FGBs.

Free vibration analysis of a spinning piezoelectric beam with geometric nonlinearities

The linear and non-linear free vibrations of a spinning piezoelectric beam are studied by considering geometric nonlinearities and electromechanical coupling effect. The non-linear differential equations of the spinning piezoelectric beam governing two transverse vibrations are derived by using two Euler angles transformation and extended Hamilton principle, wherein an additional piezoelectric coupling term and different linear terms are present in contrast to the traditional shaft model. Linear frequencies are obtained by solving the standard eigenvalues of the linearized system directly, and the non-linear frequencies and non-linear complex modes are achieved by using the method of multiple scales. For free vibrations analysis of a spinning piezoelectric beam, the non-linear modal motions are investigated as forward and backward precession with different spinning speeds. The responses to the initial conditions for such a gyroscopic system are studied,and a beat phenomenon is found, which are then validated by numerical simulation. The influences of some parameters such as electrical resistance, rotary inertia and spinning speeds to the non-linear dynamics of a spinning piezoelectric beam are investigated.

Vibration analysis and active control of nearly periodic two-span beams with piezoelectric actuator/sensor pairs

The piezoelectric materials are used to investigate the active vibration control of ordered/disordered periodic two-span beams. The equation of motion of each sub-beam with piezoelectric patches is established based on Hamilton＇s principle with an assumed mode method. The velocity feedback control algorithm is used to design the controller. The free and forced vibration behaviors of the two-span beams with the piezoelectric actuators and sensors are analyzed. The vibration properties of the disordered two-span beams caused by misplacing the middle support are also researched. In addition, the effects of the length disorder degree on the vibration performances of the disordered beams are investigated. From the numerical results, it can be concluded that the disorder in the length of the periodic two-span beams will cause vibration localizations of the free and forced vibrations of the structure, and the vibration localization phenomenon will be more and more obvious when the length difference between the two sub-beams increases. Moreover, when the velocity feedback control is used, both the forced and the free vibrations will be suppressed. Meanwhile, the vibration behaviors of the two-span beam are tuned.

One-dimensional dynamic equations of a piezoelectric semiconductor beam with a rectangular cross section and their application in static and dynamic characteristic analysis

Within the framework of continuum mechanics, the double power series ex- pansion technique is proposed, and a series of reduced one-dimensional （1D） equations for a piezoelectric semiconductor beam are obtained. These derived equations are universal, in which extension, flexure, and shear deformations are all included, and can be degen- erated to a number of special cases, e.g., extensional motion, coupled extensional and flexural motion with shear deformations, and elementary flexural motion without shear deformations. As a typical application, the extensional motion of a ZnO beam is analyzed sequentially. It is revealed that semi-conduction has a great effect on the performance of the piezoelectric semiconductor beam, including static deformations and dynamic be- haviors. A larger initial carrier density will evidently lead to a lower resonant frequency and a smaller displacement response, which is a little similar to the dissipative effect. Both the derived approximate equations and the corresponding qualitative analysis are general and widely applicable, which can clearly interpret the inner physical mechanism of the semiconductor in the piezoelectrics and provide theoretical guidance for further experimental design.

Analytical modeling of sandwich beam for piezoelectric bender elements

Piezoelectric bender elements are widely used as electromechanical sensors and actuators, An analytical sandwich beam model for piezoelectric bender elements was developed based on the first-order shear deformation theory （FSDT）, which assumes a single rotation angle for the whole cross-section and a quadratic distribution function for coupled electric potential in piezoelectric layers, and corrects the effect of transverse shear strain on the electric displacement integration. Free vibration analysis of simplysupported bender elements was carried out and the numerical results showed that, solutions of the present model for various thickness-to-length ratios are compared well with the exact two-dimensional solutions, which presents an efficient and accurate model for analyzing dynamic electromechanical responses of bender elements.

A CLOSE-FORM SOLUTION TO SIMPLY SUPPORTED PIEZOELECTRIC BEAMS UNDER UNIFORM EXTERIOR PRESSURE

On the basis of two-dimensional constitutive relationships of piezoelectric materials, the analytic solution for simply supported piezoelectric beams under uniform exterior pressure was derived. Furthermore the results were also compared with the ones of FEM for piezoelectric materials. Thus the foundation for further research of piezoelectric materials distribution sensing mechanism and the validation of numerical methods such as FEM is provided.

ANALYTICAL SOLUTION OF A SIMPLY SUPPORTED PIEZOELECTRIC BEAM SUBJECTED TO A UNIFORMLY DISTRIBUTED LOADING

Using the inverse method, the analytical solution of a simply supported piezoelectric beam subjected to a uniformly distributed loading has been studied.First,the polynomials of stress function and induction function are given.Then, considering the gradient properties of the elastic parameter and the potential funciton as well as the piezoelectric parameter,the analytical solution of a simply supported beam subjected to a uniformly distributed loading is obtained and discussed.

ACTIVE VIBRATION CONTROL OF A CANTILEVER BEAM USING PIEZOELECTRIC SENSORS AND ACTUATORS

讨论了利用压电片作为传感器和驱动器对悬臂梁进行主动振动控制问题，针对模态频率差距较大的系统，提出了分组建模和控制的方法。使用滤波器消除观测溢出。文中还讨论了传感器／驱动器配置问题。实验结果验证了所述方法的有效性。

A variational energy approach for electromechanical analysis of thick piezoelectric beam

A new two dimensional coupled electromechanical model for a thick, laminated beam with piezoelectric and isotropic lamina subjected to static external electric loading is developed. The model combined the first order shear deformation theory for the relatively thick elastic core and linear piezoelectric theory for the piezoelectric lamina. The actuation response is induced through the application of external electric voltage. Rayleigh-Ritz method is adopted to model the displacement and potential fields of the beam and governing equations were finally derived from the variational energy principle. The model allows the piezoelectric lamina to be formulated via a two-dimensional model because of the strong electro-mechanical coupling and the presence of a two-dimensional electric field. Numerical examples of piezoelectric laminated beam are presented. It is shown in this paper that a one-dimensional model for the piezoelectric beam-like layer is inadequate.

Folding beam-type piezoelectric phononic crystal with low-frequency and broad band gap

A folding beam-type piezoelectric phononic crystal model is proposed to isolate vibration. Two piezoelectric bimorphs are joined by two masses as a folding structure to comprise each unit cell of the piezoelectric phononic crystal. Each bimorph is connected independently by a resistive-inductive resonant shunting circuit. The folding structure extends the propagation path of elastic waves, while its structure size remains quite small. Propagation of coupled extension-flexural elastic waves is studied by the classical laminated beam theory and transfer matrix method. The theoretical model is further verified with the finite element method(FEM). The effects of geometrical and circuit parameters on the band gaps are analyzed. With only 4 unit cells, the folding beam-type piezoelectric phononic crystal generates two Bragg band gaps of 369 Hz to1 687 Hz and 2 127 Hz to 4 000 Hz. In addition, between these two Bragg band gaps, a locally resonant band gap is induced by resonant shunting circuits. Appropriate circuit parameters are used to join these two Bragg band gaps by the locally resonant band gap.Thus, a low-frequency and broad band gap of 369 Hz to 4 000 Hz is obtained.

Harvesting base vibration energy by a piezoelectric inverted beam with pendulum

We proposed a two-degrees-of-freedom inverted piezoelectric beam with pendulum to promote the performance of vibration energy harvesting. This configuration is composed of an inverted elastic beam and a pendulum attached to its free end. The electromechanical equations governing the nonlinear system were derived. The harmonic balance method(HBM)is applied to solve the equation and the results prove that there exists a 1:3 super-harmonic resonance. The simulation results show that owing to the particular nonlinearity, there appears a special bending effect in the amplitude-frequency response, i.e., bending right for the first natural frequency and left for the second natural frequency, which is beneficial for harvesting vibration energy. The HBM results are verified by the entity simulations. Furthermore, over a relatively wide range of power spectral density, it could reach a dense jumping and give a dense high pulse voltage.

ANALYSIS OF BEAMS WITH PIEZOELECTRIC ACTUATORS

Based on the two-dimensional constitutive relationships of the piezoelectric material, an analytical solution for an intelligent beam excited by a pair of piezoelectric actuators is derived. With the solution the force and moment generated by two piezoelectric actuators and a pair of piezoelectric actuator/sensor are obtained. Examples of a cantilever piezo electric laminated beam or a simply supported piezoelectric laminated beam, applied with voltages, are given.

POLYNOMIAL SOLUTIONS TO PIEZOELECTRIC BEAMS (Ⅱ) ——ANALYTICAL SOLUTIONS TO TYPICAL PROBLEMS

For the orthotropic piezoelectric plane problem, a series of piezoelectric beams is solved and the corresponding analytical solutions are obtained with the trialand-error method on the basis of the general solution in the case of three distinct eigenvalues, in which all displacements, electrical potential, stresses and electrical displacements are expressed by three displacement functions in terms of harmonic polynomials. These problems are cantilever beam with cross force and point charge at free end, cantilever beam and simply-supported beam subjected to uniform loads on the upper and lower surfaces, and cantilever beam subjected to linear electrical potential.

POLYNOMIAL SOLUTIONS TO PIEZOELECTRIC BEAMS (Ⅰ) ——SEVERAL EXACT SOLUTIONS

For the orthotropic piezoelectric plane problem, a series of piezoelectric beams is solved and the corresponding exact solutions are obtained with the trial-anderror method on the basis of the general solution in the case of three distinct eigenvalues, in which all displacements, electrical potential, stresses and electrical displacements are expressed by three displacement functions in terms of harmonic polynomials. These problems are rectangular beams having rigid body displacements and identical electrical potential, rectangular beams under uniform tension and electric displacement as well as pure shearing and pure bending, beams of two free ends subjected to uniform electrical potential on the upper and lower surfaces.

TRANSVERSELY ISOTROPIC DAMAGE AROUND CONDUCTING CRACK-TIP IN FOUR-POINT BENDING PIEZOELECTRIC BEAM

A static damage constitutive model was proposed on basis of the electrical enthalpy density, and then some characteristics of transversely isotropic damage were discussed. Finally, the effects of both crack depth and applied loads on damage distributions were investigated through numerically analyzing transversely isotropic damage in a four_point bending PZT_PIC151 beam with a central conducting crack. Some conclusions were given: 1) Crack depth and mechanical loading have great influence on both mechanical and electrical damages.With their increment,the damages at crack_tip obviously increase and their region sizes also expand. 2) Effects of electrical loading on the two kinds of damages are obviously different. Electrical loading monotonously changes magnitude but region size of mechanical damage, whose effect on electrical damage is very complex.