Fluid-Structure Interaction Analysis of a Piezoelectric Cantilever for Energy Harvesting

A numerical investigation was conducted to study the impact of varying the velocity magnitude and the elasticity of the cantilever on the performance of the piezoelectric beam such as tip deflection and voltage, tip electric field and maximum electric field. COMSOL software was used to solve for the governing equations taking into account fluid-structure interaction. The results of this investigation were compared against analytical results found in the literature and the agreement was excellent. The results presented in this study demonstrated a substantial impact of the flow velocity magnitude and elasticity of the cantilever on the tip deflection and voltage as well as maximum electric field. As the velocity increased and the elasticity of the microcantilever decreased, the tip deflection increased and consequently increased voltage and electric field. This study suggests that high voltage and electricity can be generated from energy harvester if they are subjected to high fluctuations.