Airflow energy harvesting with high wind velocities for industrial applications

[摘要] An airflow energy harvester capable of harvesting energy from vortices at high speed is presented in this paper. The airflow energy harvester is implemented using a modified helical Savonius turbine and an electromagnetic generator. A power management module with maximum power point finding capability is used to manage the harvested energy and convert the low voltage magnitude from the generator to a usable level for wireless sensors. The airflow energy harvester is characterized using vortex generated by air hitting a plate in a wind tunnel. By using an aircraft environment with wind speed of 17 m/s as case study, the output power of the airflow energy harvester is measured to be 126 mW. The overall efficiency of the power management module is 45.76 to 61.2%, with maximum power point tracking efficiency of 94.21 to 99.72% for wind speed of 10 to 18 m/s, and has a quiescent current of 790 nA for the maximum power point tracking circuit.

[发布机构] College of Engineering, Mathematics and Physical Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter; EX4 4QF, United Kingdom^1

[效力级别] 能源学

[关键词] Electromagnetic generators;Energy Harvester;Harvesting energies;Maximum power point;Maximum Power Point Tracking;Overall efficiency;Quiescent currents;Savonius turbine