Underwater energy harvesting from a turbine hosting ionic polymer metal composites

Abstract

In this study, we explore the possibility of energy harvesting from fluid flow through a turbine hosting ionic polymer metal composites (IPMCs). Specifically, IPMC harvesters are embedded in the blades of a small-scale vertical axis water turbine to convert flow kinetics into electrical power via low-frequency flow-induced IPMC deformations. An in-house fabricated Savonius–Darrieus hybrid active turbine with three IPMCs is tested in a laboratory water tunnel to estimate the energy harvesting capabilities of the device as a function of the shunting electrical load. The turbine is shown to harvest a few nanowatt from a mean flow of for shunting resistances in the range 100–. To establish a first understanding of the energy harvesting device, we propose a quasi-static hydroelastic model for the bending of the IPMCs and we utilize a black-box model to study their electromechanical response.