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Title: Conformal piezoelectric energy harvesting and storage from motions of the heart, lung, and diaphragm

Journal Article · · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
 [1];  [1];  [2];  [3];  [1];  [1];  [2];  [3];  [3];  [4];  [4];  [3];  [3];  [5];  [6];  [3];  [1]
  1. Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)
  2. Tsinghua Univ., Beijing (China); Northwestern Univ., Evanston, IL (United States)
  3. Univ. of Arizona, Tucson, AZ (United States)
  4. Tsinghua Univ., Beijing (China)
  5. MC10 Inc., Cambridge, MA (United States)
  6. Northwestern Univ., Evanston, IL (United States)

Here, we report advanced materials and devices that enable high-efficiency mechanical-to-electrical energy conversion from the natural contractile and relaxation motions of the heart, lung, and diaphragm, demonstrated in several different animal models, each of which has organs with sizes that approach human scales. Here, a cointegrated collection of such energy-harvesting elements with rectifiers and microbatteries provides an entire flexible system, capable of viable integration with the beating heart via medical sutures and operation with efficiencies of ~2%. Additional experiments, computational models, and results in multilayer configurations capture the key behaviors, illuminate essential design aspects, and offer sufficient power outputs for operation of pacemakers, with or without battery assist.

Research Organization:
Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES). Materials Sciences & Engineering Division
Grant/Contract Number:
FG02-07ER46471
OSTI ID:
1875109
Journal Information:
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, Vol. 111, Issue 5; ISSN 0027-8424
Publisher:
National Academy of SciencesCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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