Nonlinear Dynamics of a Special Piezoelectric Energy Harvester With a Special Bistable Piezoelectric Cantilever Beam

This paper presents a special piezoelectric energy harvester system which is obtained by separating the end of the upper piezoelectric layer of the traditional piezoelectric cantilever beam from its basic layer. A mass I is located at the end of the separated upper piezoelectric layer (SUPL), a mass II and a permanent magnet I are located at the end of the separated lower piezoelectric beam (SLPB) and a permanent magnet II is added in the opposite position of the permanent magnet I and they face each other with same polarities. A nonlinear magnetic force which can broaden the frequency bandwidth of the system is generated mutually on the two permanent magnets. Studies find that this special piezoelectric energy harvester has extremely high energy capture efficiency. In order to further explore the reason of high efficiency, experimental research on its dynamic behavior is carried out. The experimental results show that the vibrations of the SUPL and the SLPB are relatively simple. The dynamic behaviors of the SUPL, the SLPB and the unseparated part are different. The unseparated part of the piezoelectric shows relatively complex nonlinear phenomenon due to the interaction of nonlinear magnetic force and the collision. With the increase of the external excitation frequency, period doubling motion and almost periodic motion appear alternately.