A Magnetoelectric Generator for Energy Harvesting From the Vibration of Magnetic Levitation

Vibration-based energy harvester has been widely studied during the past years. In order to improve the power-generating ability and enlarge the frequency range of energy harvesters, this paper presents the design and analysis of a new magnetoelectric energy harvester that uses Terfenol-D/PZT/Terfenol-D laminate to harvest energy from nonlinear vibrations created by magnetic levitation. The mathematical model of the proposed harvester is derived and used in a parametric study. Time-domain numerical results of the system's mechanical and electrical responses are obtained and discussed. It is shown that, due to the high energy density and strong magneto-mechanical coupling effect of magnetostrictive material, the proposed harvester is capable of generating very high voltage and power at low frequency ranges.