Power generation performance of a low frequency hinge beam bistable piezoelectric-electromagnetic composite energy harvester

To improve the energy harvesting efficiency in a low frequency environment, a low frequency hinge beam bistable piezoelectric–electromagnetic composite energy harvester is proposed. The power generation performance of the energy harvester is analyzed by establishing a mathematical model of the energy harvester and combining numerical simulation and experimental verification. The results show that the optimal resistances of the piezoelectric and electromagnetic parts of the energy harvester are 300 kΩ and 100 Ω respectively; the length of connecting rod, parameter b, the number of turns of the coil, and the excitation acceleration have significant effects on the energy harvesting efficiency, in which the maximum output voltages of the piezoelectric part and the electromagnetic part reach 7.47 V and 0.36 V, which are improved by 66.7% and 121.8% respectively, and the low frequency energy harvesting efficiency is increased. The experimental results are in good agreement with the simulation results, and the relative errors of the peak voltages of the piezoelectric and electromagnetic parts are minimized to 0.19% and 0.44%, respectively, which verifies the reliability of the theoretical model. The energy harvester provides an environmentally sustainable way of powering microelectronic devices, which has a wide range of applications and important research significance.