An energy harvesting application in a long span suspension bridge

In the last years, Energy Harvesting for applications in structures and infrastructures is a key research topic, and focuses on different aspects. A first classification can be made with regard to the principal object of study and the associated scale, as it would be classified following a multilevel point of view. Under this philosophy, this research is finalized to the optimal coupling of conventional and well-known structural systems with devices for EH, where efforts can be devoted in the coupling of proper devices with flexible structural systems in order to extract energy from vibrations induced by external (environmental and traffic) loads. A novel device for the vibration energy harvesting, based on piezoelectic materials, is modeled in a commercial Finite Element Method code, in order to optimally extract energy from vibrations induced by external loads.