Development of a Multi-Resonant Impact-Driven Energy Harvester (MRI-DEH) for Electrification of Rural Rail Crossings

Details

• Creators:
  Amjadian, Mohsen ; Tarawneh, Constantine ; Monsury, Md. Ismail ; Sanchez, Adamaris
• Corporate Creators:
  University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. University Transportation Center for Railway Safety ; University of Nebraska-Lincoln
• Corporate Contributors:
  United States. Department of Transportation. University Transportation Centers (UTC) Program ; United States. Department of Transportation. Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology
• Subject/TRT Terms:
  Converters (Electricity) Electric Generators Electromagnetic Devices Energy Conservation
• Publication/ Report Number:
  UTCRS-UTRGV-M1CY24
• Resource Type:
  Tech Report
• Geographical Coverage:
  United States
• Edition:
  June 1, 2024 – August 31, 2025
• Corporate Publisher:
  University Transportation Center for Railway Safety (UTCRS) Tier-1 University Transportation Center (UTC)
• Abstract:
  This study investigates an electromagnetic energy harvester that utilizes an impact-driven frequency up-conversion mechanism to convert low-frequency vibrations into electrical power. The device consists of a plastic cantilever beam with a copper coil attached at its free end, oscillating between two stationary neodymium magnets. A stopper beneath the resonator induces controlled impacts, increasing stiffness and introducing nonlinear dynamics that broaden the resonance frequency range. A finite element model of a multi-span beam under moving loads was developed to assess acceleration inputs, and subsequently an analytical model of the energy harvester with impact effects is developed to analyze the induced voltage under measured acceleration signals of the multi-span beam, both with and without impact. An experimental prototype is also fabricated to validate the effect of impact on widening the harvester’s frequency response across different acceleration intensities. Results show that the impact mechanism increases induced voltage and widens operational bandwidth. Specifically, with a 7 mm impact gap, the maximum voltage improved from 32 mV (no impact) to 43 mV (with impact) at 0.20g acceleration, while the frequency bandwidth expanded by 1 Hz.
• Format:
  PDF
• Funding:
  69A3552348340
• Collection(s):
  University Transportation Centers
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:1ef2421acbfc81553c3494537e0c873ea040e65212e96831abfc0503a3cb35fcef082a9e7600900f4aab77fa47e575457bab7258ae83e56b640394c04e1f748e
• Download URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/88088/dot_88088_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.63 MB ]