Piezoelectric Energy Harvesting from Traffic Induced Deformation of Pavements

In the last decade, the sensing technology and the concern of the robustness of the roadways have significantly grown. The limit of power source has become an impediment force of the research of sensing technology. Recently, energy harvesting is more proved as a promoting solution. It also provides a new source of clean and renewable energy that can help reduce negative environmental impacts while contributing to improve roadway mobility. In this work, four common energy harvesting approaches are compared and piezoelectric energy harvesting is proposed. It is known as a stable technology converting kinetic energy into electricity. The sinusoidal energy power output from the random external excitation would be rectified and stored by interfacial circuit. Lead Zirconate Titanate (PZT) is widely used in piezoelectric energy harvesting systems due to its high cost-effectiveness. This work presents a maneuver of powering the transportation infrastructural facilities and monitoring electronics using piezoelectric energy harvesting technology. Comparison of coupling configuration, material selection and testing methodologies are also presented.