Performance Investigation of a Flexible Polyvinylidene Fluoride (PVDF) Energy Harvester Array in a Two-Stage Vertical...

Area of Science:

• Energy Harvesting
• Materials Science
• Fluid Dynamics

Background:

• Flexible polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) materials offer potential for wind-induced energy harvesting.
• Optimizing array configurations is crucial for maximizing power generation efficiency.

Purpose of the Study:

• To experimentally investigate the performance of a two-stage, parallel, vertically aligned PVDF energy harvester.
• To evaluate the impact of different array configurations (2x2, 4x1, 1x4) on energy harvesting performance.
• To analyze the effects of vortex interaction and array geometry on power output.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of PVDF energy harvester modules and assembly into 2x2, 4x1, and 1x4 arrays.
• Experimental testing of array configurations at wind speeds from 1 to 3 m/s.
• Measurement of charging voltage, output power, uniformity index, and array efficiency.

Main Results:

• The 2x2 array configuration achieved a higher average charging voltage (2.895 V) and total output power (0.731 W) at 3 m/s compared to 4x1 (0.224 W) and 1x4 (0.176 W) arrays.
• The 2x2 configuration demonstrated superior energy distribution with a uniformity index (U=0.701) and array efficiency (η=0.789).
• Vortex amplification index (G=0.663) indicated enhanced performance due to vortex interaction in the 2x2 setup.

Conclusions:

• The two-stage, parallel, funnel-type PVDF energy harvester in a 2x2 array configuration is highly effective for efficient energy harvesting.
• This design shows promise for practical applications, particularly in low wind speed environments.
• Array geometry significantly influences vortex interaction and overall energy harvesting performance.