energies-logo

Journal Browser

Journal Browser

Innovative Energy Harvesting

A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "L: Energy Sources".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 July 2023) | Viewed by 14989

Special Issue Editors

Department of Mechanics and Aerospace Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China
Interests: piezoelectric energy harvesting; multiphysics systems including electro-elastic couplings; fluid–structure interaction; mechanical metamaterials; vibration and wave control; nonlinear circuits

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Mechatronics and Control Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China
Interests: smart materials and structures; energy harvesting; simultaneous vibration suppression and energy harvesting; nonlinear dynamics and control
Department of Mechanics and Aerospace Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen 518055, China
Interests: nonlinear dynamics; piezoelectric energy harvesting; active control; bistable; finite element

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Energy harvesting is an important and necessary supplement to the main electric grid. The advantage is that these smaller energy-harvesting systems can be located off the main electric grid to supply rural customers or low-power wireless IoT nodes. This Special Issue mainly focuses on innovative piezoelectric energy harvesting. Piezoelectric materials have the advantages of large energy density, strong adaptability, and high conversion efficiency. Energy-harvesting devices based on piezoelectric structures can convert different forms of vibrational energy into electrical energy. This method can not only effectively reduce environmental pollution and achieve green power generation but also realize the independent power supply of medium- and low-power electronic devices. Vibration energy is widespread and is not affected by factors such as geography and time, so it has very wide application prospects and market prospects for energy harvesting. Based on the electromechanical and other multi-physics coupling mechanisms, it is a very important challenge to study how to improve the power-generation efficiency and power of energy-harvesting devices in different application environments.

This Special Issue aims to present and disseminate the most recent advances related to the theory, design, modelling, and application of all types of innovative energy-harvesting systems.

Topics of interest for publication include, but are not limited to:

  • All aspects of fluid energy harvesting, ambient-vibration energy harvesting, human-motion energy harvesting, and emerging multi-functional energy harvesting, among others;
  • Multi-physics systems for energy harvesting;
  • Hybrid piezoelectric energy harvesting;
  • Optimal design methodologies;
  • Advanced modelling approaches and mechanisms;
  • Electromechanical and vibroacoustic analyses;
  • Modeling of innovative energy-harvesting systems;
  • Novel experiments and applications of energy harvesting;
  • Machine-learning-related energy harvesting;
  • Rainfall energy harvesting;
  • Small hydro energy harvesting.

Dr. Bin Bao
Dr. Shitong Fang
Dr. Jixiao Tao
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Energies is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • piezoelectric energy harvesting
  • fluid energy harvesting
  • human motion energy harvesting
  • multi-functional energy harvesting
  • multi-physics systems

Published Papers (2 papers)

Order results
Result details
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

Jump to: Review

20 pages, 4362 KiB  
Article
Rainwater Energy Harvesting Using Micro-Turbines in Downpipes
by Josie Carter, Amin Rahmani, Mahdieh Dibaj and Mohammad Akrami
Energies 2023, 16(4), 1660; https://doi.org/10.3390/en16041660 - 7 Feb 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 11480
Abstract
Renewable energy sources are rapidly increasing in demand and importance as governments and countries around the globe begin to understand their vital role in reducing climate change. This project aimed to design and create an optimised micro-hydro turbine system for downpipes to harness [...] Read more.
Renewable energy sources are rapidly increasing in demand and importance as governments and countries around the globe begin to understand their vital role in reducing climate change. This project aimed to design and create an optimised micro-hydro turbine system for downpipes to harness the currently untapped potential energy from rainwater. Experimental methods were used to determine the magnitude of voltage output available at different rainfall intensities by simulating such flow rates on a hydraulic bench. The viability of this energy to power household appliances was then evaluated, and methods of increasing the voltage output were assessed, such as layering the turbines in a single downpipe or placing multiple downpipes around the building. The study determined that, during average rainfall in the UK, a single turbine could produce a maximum of 7.21 V of DC voltage, or 50.49 V during heavy rainfall—enough energy to power a mobile device charger or a vacuum cleaner, respectively. Therefore, this proves a high potential in rainwater energy harvesting as a renewable energy source. It was also concluded that a positive correlation occurred for both the number of turbines in a downpipe and the number of pipes around the building with the voltage output of the whole system. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovative Energy Harvesting)
Show Figures

Figure 1

Review

Jump to: Research

26 pages, 6866 KiB  
Review
Pendulum Energy Harvesters: A Review
by Jiatong Chen, Bin Bao, Jinlong Liu, Yufei Wu and Quan Wang
Energies 2022, 15(22), 8674; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15228674 - 18 Nov 2022
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2603
Abstract
In recent years, energy harvesters using pendulum systems have often been applied in ultra-low-frequency environments, such as ocean waves, human motion, and structural vibration. To illustrate the research progress in pendulum-type energy harvesting, a comprehensive review is provided in the present study. Specifically, [...] Read more.
In recent years, energy harvesters using pendulum systems have often been applied in ultra-low-frequency environments, such as ocean waves, human motion, and structural vibration. To illustrate the research progress in pendulum-type energy harvesting, a comprehensive review is provided in the present study. Specifically, single- and double-pendulum energy harvesters based on different energy-conversion mechanisms are separately grouped. In addition, different improvement techniques and design schemes used in studies on pendulum energy harvesters are summarized. Theoretical studies have explored the dynamic characteristics of single and double pendulums. Various key aspects, including the fundamental mechanisms, optimization methods, core structures, and applications, to improve the performance of single- and double-pendulum energy harvesters are discussed. Finally, several potential research directions and applications are proposed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Innovative Energy Harvesting)
Show Figures

Figure 1

Back to TopTop