This paper describes the detailed modelling of a vibration-based miniature piezoelectric device (PD) and the analysis modes of operation and control of a voltage doubler boost converter (VDBC) circuit to find the PD’s optimal operating conditions. The proposed VDBC circuit integrates a conventional voltage doubler (VD) circuit with a step-up DC-DC converter circuit in modes 1–4, while a non-linear synchronisation procedure of a conventional boost converter circuit is employed in modes 5–6. This integration acted as the voltage boost circuit without utilising duty cycles and complex auxiliary switching components. In addition, the circuit does not require external trigger signals to turn on the bidirectional switches. This facilitates the operation of VDBC circuit at very low AC voltage (Vac ≥ 0.5 V). Besides this, the electrical characteristics of VDBC circuit’s input (i.e., PD) perfectly concurs with the studied testing scenarios using impedance power sources (mechanical shaker). Firstly, the proposed circuit which can rectify the PD’s output was tested at both constant input voltage with varying excitation frequency and constant excitation frequency with varying input voltage. Next, a small-scale solar battery was charged to validate the feasibility of the performance of the proposed VDBC circuit. The proposed circuit achieved a maximum output voltage of 11.7 Vdc with an output power of 1.37 mW. In addition, the rectified voltage waveform is stable due to the sminimisation of the ripples. In addition, the performance of VDBC circuit was verified by comparing the achieved results with previously published circuits in the literature. The results show that the proposed VDBC circuit outperformed existing units as described in the literature regarding output voltage and power. The developed rectifier circuit is suitable for various real-life applications such as energy harvesting and battery charging.
Miniaturised piezoelectric devices are emerging energy harvesting sources that are appropriate for various implantable and wearable applications. However, these piezoelectric devices exhibit considerable internal resistance due to their internal impedance, which leads to self-start and low-energy conversion failures. This paper describes a dual-stage boost converter circuit by facilitating self-powering features and boosting the low voltage harvested by the piezoelectric devices into dc. The proposed circuit comprises conversion stages of ac-dc and dc-dc in Stages I and II, respectively. In addition, the proposed circuit does not require employing the auxiliary circuits to generate the train pulses by triggering the bidirectional switches to envelop the current being stored in Stage II and kick-start the self-powered circuit for piezoelectric energy harvesting systems. Theoretical assumptions and control strategies were tested and verified with ideal and impedance input sources. The proposed circuit could convert a low voltage of 3 Vac into 19 Vdc. The maximum attained output power by the proposed circuit was 3.61 mW. The outcome depicted that the proposed circuit boosted the low voltage and outperformed the existing literature circuits in terms of output voltage and power.
In this study, a complete model for a miniature excitation-powered piezoelectric generator (PG), analysis modes of operation and control of a full-bridge joule thief (FBRJT) circuit to identify the optimal points were investigated. The proposed model revealed the PG’s power dependency on mechanical excitation, acceleration, and frequency and defined the load behaviour for power optimisation. The proposed circuit, namely FBRJT, was integrated with the conventional full-bridge rectifier (FBR) in Stage 1 for AC-DC conversion and with the joule thief circuit in Stage 2 for DC-DC conversion. This integration acted as a boost converter without utilising the duty cycles and additional switching components. The electrical nature of the input of FBRJT with a simple structure, sensor-less control and auxiliary circuits showed a consistent agreement with the investigated testing scenarios using both ideal and impedance power sources. Additionally, the performance of the proposed circuit was also verified against the published results of power electronics circuits. The developed versatile circuit and control system can be utilised for many applications, such as mobile battery charging and energy harvesting.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.