Hot pressed K0.5Na0.5nbo3 material for piezoelectric transformer for energy harvesting

Abstract

An optimized method of vibration Energy Harvesting is based on a step-down transformer that regulates the power flow from the piezoelectric element to the desired electronic load. Taking into account parameters of the whole system, the “optimal” voltage gain the piezoelectric transformer can be determined where the harvested power is maximized for the actual level of mechanical excitation. Consequently the piezoelectric transformers can be used to boost up the conversion of mechanical strain into electrical power with considerable potential in Energy Harvesting applications. Nowadays however, the most important factor is usage of lead free material for its construction. Additional desired parameters of such ceramics include high value of piezoelectric coefficients, low dielectric losses and reasonable power density. This work for first time proposes a lead free K0.5Na0.5NbO3 (KNN) material implementation for stack type of piezoelectric transformer that is designed for load efficiency optimization of vibration energy harvester.