By: Harshit Gulati (2008A3PS218H)

Anshul Vikram Pandey (2008A3PS219H)

Mudit Srivastava (2008A3PS197H)
● Need for alternative power sources.
● Piezoelectric Sensors and how its done.
● Power Output from a piezoelectrical
transducer(PZT).
● Modes of Power Storage
● Signal Conditioning
● Experimental Testing
● Final GOAL!!!!!!!!
● To preserve the non-renewable natural
resources.
● This method is less costly than producing
hydroelectricity and nuclear power or any
other renewable sources of energy which
requires high installation cost..
● Best way to use the population of INDIA as
an advantage.
● Best for the use in rural areas where we
● A piezoelectric sensor is a device that
uses the piezoelectric effect to measure
pressure , acceleration, strain or force by
converting them to an electrical signal.
● PZT can be used as a mechanism to
transfer ambient vibrations into electrical
energy.

● This energy can be stored and used to

power up electrical and electronics devices

● With the recent advancement in micro

scale devices, PZT power generation can
provide a conventional alternative to
● The "piezoelectric" effect was discovered
about 1880 by Jacques & Pierre.

● They found out that when a mechanical

stress was applied on crystals such as
tourmaline, topaz, quartz, Rochelle salt
and cane sugar, - electrical charges
appeared, and this voltage was
● The basic theory behind piezoelectricity is
based on the electrical dipole.
● At rest, the dipoles formed by the positive
and negative ions cancel each other due
to the symmetry of the crystal structure,
and an electric field is not observed.
● When stressed, the crystal deforms,
symmetry is lost, and a net dipole moment
1.The charges are exactly balanced, even if
they're not symmetrically arranged.

2.The electric dipole moments exactly cancel one

another out.

3. If you squeeze the crystal (massively

exaggerated in this picture!), you force the charges
out of balance.

4.Now the effects of the charges (their dipole

moments) no longer cancel one another out and
net positive and negative charges appear on
opposite crystal faces. By squeezing the crystal,
you've produced a voltage across its opposite
● Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) : Several
times more effective than quartz.
● Berlinite (AlPO4),
rare phosphate mineral that is structurally
identical to quartz
● Cane sugar
● Quartz
● Rochelle salt
● A team of researchers from UC Berkeley
and the U.S. Department of Energy's
Lawrence Berkeley Lab have discovered a
new lead-free material that produces an
electrical current when exposed to
stress. Thin films of bismuth ferrite, an
inorganic crystalline material associated
with magnetic-electric phenomena,
produce a piezoelectric effect when
● MIT has developed ‘New Multifunctional
Fibers’ with Piezoelectric Sensitivity. It can
actually sense pressure changes against it
and generate dipole moment, thus power.
● Scientists at Princeton
University have developed
‘Flexible
Energy-Harvesting
Rubber Sheets’. The
flexible rubber sheets are
imbued with piezoelectric
ribbons and are durable,
versatile, and open up
● Energy-Generating
Floors to Power Tokyo
Subways. The total
amount of floor-space
will add up to around 25
square meters, and
they expect to obtain
over 1,400kw per day –
more than enough to
power their systems.
● The power output from a single piezo-film
is very low in the range of 0.2 W.

● Therefore, direct application of the

piezo-film as a power source is not
practical.

● Storage is thus “essential”.

Normal output voltages from piezoelectric
sensors can vary from microvolts to hundreds
of volts (depending on the mechanical stress),
and signal conditioning circuitry requirements
vary substantially. Key items to consider when
designing the amplifier are:

● Frequency of operation
● Signal amplitude
● Input impedance
● Mode of operation
 The energy produced by the PZT can be
stored in two different ways :-
● In a capacitor that allows for immediate
access to the stored energy.

● To charge a nickel metal hydride battery.

● The voltage outputs from a single
piezo-film can produce a
root-mean-squared voltage of 1.18 V
which is high enough to store the
generated electricity into a small nickel
metal hydride battery.

● It can charge a 1.2V-2500 mAh nickel

Numerous advantages arise when the power
harvested from the vibration of PZT is stored
in batteries.

● First the capacitor method requires the PZT to

consistently produce electrical energy the entire time the
application consumes power.

● The time required for a capacitor to discharge is much

smaller than that of the battery.
 ● The commercial availability-
There are some companies like
MEASUREMENT SPECIALITIES AND INC
in valley forge which sell peizoelectric films
and other kinds of piezoelectric sensors.
● The cost of a film goes form 2$ to upto 22
$ per inch square depending on its
capacitance to size ratio.
● So after availing the film we can use it by
appropriate circuitaries to design the
sensor array to get some identiifed output.
● http://inhabitat.com/2010/01/28/scientist-d
evelop-flexible-energy-harvesting-rubber-s
heets/
● http://www.ecofriend.org/entry/eco-tech-in
nowattech-s-piezoelectric-devices-tested-i
n-israel/
● http://inhabitat.com/2008/12/11/tokyo-sub
way-stations-get-piezoelectric-floors/