Design and optimization of bimorph energy harvester based on Taguchi and ANOVA approaches

The piezoelectric technique has received extensive attention in an energy harvesting system in the generation of electrical energy through renewable mechanical vibration. In this research paper, a bimorph energy scavenger based on the cantilever beam is designed and optimized to obtain the maximum efficiency. The COMSOL Multiphysics is utilized to design and simulate the proposed model whose output response has been investigated with the variation in the excitation frequency, the thickness of piezoelectric layers and the acceleration. It has been found that the thickness of the piezoelectric layers is the most promising parameter to acquire the maximum harvested energy. Moreover, several trials are also introduced in the simulation based on the resistance values of 20, 40, and 60 Omega. The results show that the output voltage has a positive linear relationship with the resistance and it is maximum at the frequency of 50 Hz, known as the resonant frequency. Many studies have shown quite significant relationships between mechanical vibration and harvested energy. So, the current research has presented a novice approach to optimize the results of an energy harvester. This approach is accomplished by a statistical analysis based on the Taguchi and ANOVA design of experiments. (C) 2019 Faculty of Engineering, Alexandria University. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V.