Vortex Induced Vibration Energy Harvesting through Piezoelectric Transducers

Harvesting energy from vortex induced vibrations (VIV) in flowing water has the potential to be a low-impact, low-cost alternative to traditional hydropower methods. This project focused on utilizing piezoelectric transducers to transform the VIV oscillations of a cylinder to electrical power. The final prototype successfully produced 0.1 microwatts, but the erratic flow speed of the water and the project’s small scale prevented consistent power generation