Performance of piezoelectric power generation of multilayered poly(vinylidene fluoride) under high mechanical strain

In this study, we examine the effective usage of a piezoelectric polymer for electric power generation on the basis of polymeric features such as high robustness, high flexibility, and easy formability. Theoretical calculation elucidates the potential of piezoelectric generation of the polymer with a large elastic strain. It is confirmed by the experimental results that the multilayered structure of the rolled poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) films enhances the performance of piezoelectric generation in proportion to the number of the PVDF layers and shows an apparent d₃₃ of 7.1 nC/N for the film rolled 200 times. The generated charge as a function of the applied stress shows a linear increase. As a practical usage, we design the mechanical system equipped with a lever for applying a large foot-step-derived stress to embedded PVDF films. The performance of electric power generation using the system and the charging characteristics with the relatively large load capacitor are presented.