This Broadening Participation Research Initiation Grant in Engineering (BRIGE) provides funding for the evaluation of a piezoelectric energy regeneration shock absorber. The piezoelectric energy regenerator, composed of several piezoceramic (PZT) unimorphs, will provide vibration suppression and generate energy from vibration. An electromechanical model is developed based on nonlinear composite thin beam theory and nonlinear constitutive law. An optimized design is obtained via parametric study. As system parameters of the energy regenerator vary, such as the geometric dimensions and the material properties, the variations in the amount of generated energy will be analyzed. The effect of the electromechanical nonlinearity and the geometric nonlinearity of the PZT unimorph on the efficiency of energy regeneration will be investigated. A novel electrical-mechanical combined energy harvest circuit, which can operate under two modes, is designed for obtaining maximum energy from a piezoelectric generator. The overall objective of this research is to better understand the electromechanical properties of piezoelectric materials; to design a shock absorber with good vibration suppression as well as high energy recovery efficiency.
Piezoelectric energy harvesting as a green energy creation method provides an alternative option for alleviating the world energy stress. The success of the proposed study will bring to life a new generation of high energy efficiency cars with emission reduction, and hence improve our environmental conditions. This research will provide a comprehensive understanding of the electromechanical properties of piezoelectric material. The study of the power performances in nonlinear dynamical regime will especially impact material science and bring novel ideas to the design of future piezoelectric generators. The study of the nonlinear domain switching behavior of the constitutive model will accelerate the development of boundary value problems and domain wall dynamics. Results from this project may find applications in areas of mechanical, biomedical, and information technology. This project serves underrepresented students at different levels: a) workshops for African-American high school students and their teachers will be developed, b) female graduate students and a minority undergraduate student will be recruited to work on this project, and c) a women in engineering research symposium will be organized to serve as a career mentoring tool for female students.
