Design of lead-free BCZT-based ceramics with enhanced piezoelectric energy harvesting performances

The design of lead-free ceramics for piezoelectric energy harvesting applications has become a hot topic. Among these materials, Ba_0.85Ca_0.15Zr_0.10Ti_0.90O₃ (BCZT) and BaTi_0.89Sn_0.11O₃ (BTSn) are considered as potential candidates due to their enhanced piezoelectric properties. Here, the structural, electrical, piezoelectric and piezoelectric energy harvesting properties of the (1 - x)Ba_0.85Ca_0.15Zr_0.10Ti_0.90O₃-xBaTi_0.89Sn_0.11O₃ (xBTSn, x = 0.2, 0.4 and 0.6) system are investigated. A systematic study of the structural properties of the xBTSn samples was carried out using X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, and dielectric measurements. The addition of BTSn allows a successive phase transition, which broadens the application temperature range. The enhanced piezoelectric energy harvesting properties were found in the 0.2BTSn ceramic, where the large-signal and small-signal piezoelectric coefficients, piezoelectric voltage and the piezoelectric figure of merit reached 245 pm V^-1, 228 pC N^-1, 16.2 mV m N^-1 and 3.7 pm² N^-1, respectively. Consequently, the combination of BCZT and BTSn could provide suitable lead-free materials with enhanced piezoelectric energy harvesting performances.