Design and test of a Bennet's doubler device with mechanical switches for vibrational energy harvesting

16th International Conference on Micro and Nanotechnology for Power Generation and Energy Conversion Applications

物理学;能源学

Ouanes, M. A. Ben^1,2 ; Lu, Y.^2 ; Samaali, H.^1,2 ; Basset, P.^2 ; Najar, F.^1

Applied Mechanics and Systems Research Laboratory, Tunisia Polytechnic School, University of Carthage, BP 743, La Marsa

2078, Tunisia^1

Université Paris-Est, ESYCOM, ESIEE Paris, Noisy-le-Grand, France^2

关键词: Ambient vibrations;    Electrical charges;    Mechanical switch;    Moving electrodes;    Operating condition;    Variable capacitor;    Vibration energy harvesters;    Vibrational energy harvesting;   

Others  :  https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1742-6596/773/1/012038/pdf
DOI  :  10.1088/1742-6596/773/1/012038

来源: IOP

【 摘 要 】

In this work, we demonstrate that the use of self-synchronized mechanical switches in replacement of diodes into electrostatic vibration energy harvesters (e-VEH) can lead to better power generation. Indeed, mechanical switches have the advantage of no leakage current and no threshold voltage. As a proof of concept, we use the Bennet's doubler electrostatic generator. The proposed e-VEH is composed of two variable capacitors triggered by a central electrode taken as an inertial mass. Ambient vibrations induce inertial forces on the central electrode, as a result a voltage doubling is obtained at each operating cycle. The mechanical switches are directly fixed to the moving electrode. In addition, no dedicated pre-charge is required: the system starts with ambient electrical charges. The device is fabricated and tested under harmonic motion. A comparison between the proposed design and those using diodes under the same operating conditions shows an experimental direct increase of the harvested electrical power of around 28%.