Throughout our daily lives, humans waste a lot of energy. We exert a force on the ground while we walk, while we are driving, and during our many other daily tasks. Now the question is, how do we harness this energy? Our answer is with the use of Piezoelectric materials.
Research and the creation of this project was to figure out how Piezoelectricity works and how to utilize it in everyday life. We decided that creating a piece of a highway would give us the most amount of energy. The equations, pictures, and other information was accumulated through different scholarly sources found on the internet and cited at the end. We used this information to help us understand and model what power output we could get from changing a section of a highway to include Piezoelectric material.
Table of Contents
1. TOPIC
2. RESEARCH QUESTION
3. ABSTRACT
4. SUMMARY
5. INTRODUCTION TO PIEZOELECTRICITY
6. BACKGROUND
7. OUR PROJECT
8. EQUATIONS AND VARIABLES
9. COMPARTMENTALIZATION
10. PSEUDOCODE
11. EXAMPLES OF COMPLETED PROGRAM
12. SOURCE CODE:
13. CONCLUSION
14. WORKS CITED
Research Objective and Topics
The primary objective of this project is to model and evaluate the potential of piezoelectric technology to harvest energy from the mechanical stress exerted by automobiles on highways. The research investigates how placing piezoelectric plates on Interstate 25 could convert kinetic energy from vehicle traffic into stored electrical power.
- Mechanisms of the Piezoelectric effect
- Energy harvesting from vehicular kinetic stress
- Computational modeling of power output via MATLAB
- Practical implementation feasibility and infrastructure challenges
Excerpt from the Book
Introduction to Piezoelectricity
To understand why we chose Piezoelectric generators (commonly known as Piezos) we first need to define a few things. The effect called “The Piezoelectric effect” is the electromechanical interaction between the states of mechanical and electrical in some materials. In more layman terms, it is the electric charge that accumulates inside of solid materials in response to mechanical stress. This is only true if there is no inversion symmetry in the material. Inversion symmetry is when, on a molecule, there is an atom that is in a directly opposite (along the x, y, or z axis) that is identical to it.
Some naturally occurring crystals that have the piezoelectric effect include: Quartz, Sucrose, Topaz, and other crystals, including synthetic ones, that share similar structure as Quartz. Some other materials that possess the Piezoelectric effect include: bone, silk, and wood. For more realistic purposes, people have commonly used ceramics like Barium titanate (the first Piezoelectric ceramic discovered) and Lead zirconate titanate (the most common piezoelectric ceramic used today).
Something else that is interesting about the Piezoelectric effect, is that it is completely reversible. This means that if a voltage is put onto a Piezo, then it will cause the material to be stretched. Note that pushing a Piezo together will cause a positive voltage, while pulling it apart will cause a negative voltage. The same is also true inversely.
Summary of Chapters
TOPIC: Introduces the concept of harvesting human-wasted energy using piezoelectric materials.
RESEARCH QUESTION: Defines the scope of the study regarding energy harvesting from plates on Interstate 25.
ABSTRACT: Outlines the research intent to model power output from highway sections using piezoelectric materials.
SUMMARY: Explains the basic principle of the Piezoelectric effect and its application to vehicle-generated force.
INTRODUCTION TO PIEZOELECTRICITY: Provides the scientific definition and mechanisms of electromechanical interaction in piezoelectric materials.
BACKGROUND: Details the historical discovery and initial practical applications of piezoelectric technology.
OUR PROJECT: Discusses the rationale, methodology, and social challenges regarding the implementation of piezoelectric roadways.
EQUATIONS AND VARIABLES: Lists the mathematical formulas and physical parameters used to calculate power generation.
COMPARTMENTALIZATION: Presents the logical structure of the data and energy harvesting calculations.
PSEUDOCODE: Describes the development of the MATLAB application used to simulate the power output results.
EXAMPLES OF COMPLETED PROGRAM: Shows various outcome scenarios generated by the simulation software.
SOURCE CODE: Contains the programmatic implementation used for calculating energy outputs.
CONCLUSION: Summarizes the potential of piezoelectric technology as a clean energy source despite implementation difficulties.
WORKS CITED: Provides references for the scholarly sources and data used in the project.
Keywords
Piezoelectricity, Energy Harvesting, Kinetic Energy, Interstate 25, MATLAB, Capacitors, Piezoelectric Effect, Sustainable Energy, Electromechanical Interaction, Power Grid, Traffic Volume, Voltage, Renewable Energy
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary focus of this research?
The research focuses on the feasibility of capturing wasted kinetic energy from automobiles on highways using piezoelectric materials embedded in the road surface.
What are the central themes of the work?
The work explores piezoelectric material properties, the mechanics of energy harvesting from traffic, and the simulation of power generation through computational modeling.
What is the core research question?
The study asks to what extent specific piezoelectric plates on Interstate 25 can harness power from vehicle-exerted force during peak and non-peak hours.
Which scientific methodology is employed?
The authors employ a modeling approach, utilizing physical constitutive laws for piezoelectric materials to build a MATLAB simulation that predicts power output based on traffic data.
What does the main body cover?
It covers the history of piezoelectricity, the theoretical framework for energy conversion, implementation logistics, and the specific algorithms used in the project's software.
Which keywords characterize this paper?
Key terms include Piezoelectricity, Kinetic Energy, Energy Harvesting, MATLAB simulation, and Highway Infrastructure.
Why was Interstate 25 chosen for this study?
Interstate 25 was selected because of its high traffic volume, providing a massive amount of unutilized gravitational and kinetic force suitable for energy harvesting.
How does the project handle potential traffic variations?
The MATLAB program calculates energy output based on three distinct scenarios: High Traffic, Average Traffic, and Low Traffic days, subdivided further by time frames.
What are the primary challenges identified by the authors?
The authors note that implementation is difficult because it would require tearing up existing roads, potentially causing traffic delays and public dissatisfaction.
How is the energy stored in the proposed system?
The energy is stored in capacitors, which serve as a method for temporary, large-scale electrical energy storage.
- Arbeit zitieren
- Sumaanyu Maheshwari (Autor:in), Nicolas McMahon (Autor:in), 2017, Piezoelectricity, Harnessing Your Wasted Energy, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/382490
