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Optimizing energy density in dielectric elastomer generators: a reliability-dependent metric

Author(s): ORCID
ORCID


Medium: journal article
Language(s): English
Published in: Smart Materials and Structures, , n. 11, v. 33
Page(s): 115030
DOI: 10.1088/1361-665x/ad840e
Abstract:

Dielectric elastomer generators (DEGs) are soft transducers capable of converting mechanical energy into electrostatic energy. Increasing the mechanical stretch amplitude and the electric field imposed to the DEG leads to higher energy conversion at the cost of a reduced lifetime. Here, mechanical fatigue and electrical degradation were assessed on a silicone-based DEG, and the outcome was used to build an electro-mechanical reliability model. A novel metric, termed levelized energy density, has been introduced to carefully balance the conflicting objectives of high energy output and long-term reliability. Through a multi-dimensional anaylsis of this index, the optimal operating parameters (stretch amplitude and electric field) that maximize energy conversion can be derived. Energy densities reported in literature are generally obtained after pushing the DEG close to their intrinsic limits for a limited number of cycles. In our approach, more realistic values in the endurance domain are presented, which typically leads to a 9-fold decrease in energy density for a design life of 1 million cycles. This article not only addresses the challenge of optimizing DEG performance but also emphasizes the importance of considering realistic operational conditions to enhance reliability, ultimately contributing to the practical and sustainable deployment of these soft transducers in various applications.

Copyright: © 2024 Emmanuel Taine, Thomas Andritsch, Istebreq A Saeedi, Peter H F Morshuis
License:

This creative work has been published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC-BY 4.0) license which allows copying, and redistribution as well as adaptation of the original work provided appropriate credit is given to the original author and the conditions of the license are met.

  • About this
    data sheet
  • Reference-ID
    10801415
  • Published on:
    10/11/2024
  • Last updated on:
    10/11/2024
 
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