Piezoelectric thermo electromechanical energy harvester for reconnaissance satellite structure

Piezoelectric materials are widely used in aerospace industry as a source of alternate energy for micro or nanoscale electronics because of voltage dependent actuation ability. This phenomena is of absolute importance in cubic reconnaissance satellites as they have maximum number of piezoelectric patches integrated in structure. In this research work, PZT patches in the satellite structure absorbs the mechanical and thermal energy from external environment as well as from internal fluctuations and convert them into electrical energy. This electrical energy can be utilized on the spot or can be stored in batteries for wireless sensors. The experimental setup and electronic circuit is designed in order to mimic the real time conditions based on direct effect of piezoelectricity. The effect of energy generation with respect to fatigue mechanical loading condition is analyzed based on equivalent circuit method. A numerical simulation model based on commercial software ABAQUS Standard has been developed. The developed model has predicted the experimental outcome with less than \(3\%\) error. The analytical results are in good agreement with experimental as well as with numerical calculations with less than \(5\%\) error. The maximum output energy obtained in this study is 0.8 nJ.