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Updated: Mar 8, 2026

A Polymer-based Piezoelectric Vibration Energy Harvester with a 3D Meshed-Core Structure
Published on: February 20, 2019
Harvesting Ambient Vibration Energy over a Wide Frequency Range for Self-Powered Electronics
Xiaofeng Wang1,2, Simiao Niu1, Fang Yi1,3
1School of Materials Science and Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology , Atlanta, Georgia 30332-0245, United States.
Abstract:
Vibration is one of the most common energy sources in ambient environment. Harvesting vibration energy is a promising route to sustainably drive small electronics. This work introduces an approach to scavenge vibrational energy over a wide frequency range as an exclusive power source for continuous operation of electronics. An elastic multiunit triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) is rationally designed to efficiently harvest low-frequency vibration energy, which can provide a maximum instantaneous output power density of 102 W·m-3 at as low as 7 Hz and maintain its stable current outputs from 5 to 25 Hz. A self-charging power unit (SCPU) combining the TENG and a 10 mF supercapacitor gives a continuous direct current (DC) power delivery of 1.14 mW at a power management efficiency of 45.6% at 20 Hz. The performance of the SCPU can be further enhanced by a specially designed power management circuit, with a continuous DC power of 2 mW and power management efficiency of 60% at 7 Hz. Electronics such as a thermometer, hygrometer, and speedometer can be sustainably powered solely by the harvested vibration energy from a machine or riding bicycle. This approach has potential applications in self-powered systems for environment monitoring, machine safety, and transportation.
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