Enhancing energy harvesting performance by installing bio-inspired splitter plates

• A piezoelectric energy harvester by installing bio-inspired splitter plates is first proposed. • CFD simulations elucidated the performance enhancement mechanism and quantitatively assessed the flow control effect. • Experimental results unveiled the roles of the bio-inspired splitter plates in energy harvesting. Flow-induced vibration (FIV) energy harvesting technology offers a promising solution for powering sensors in Ubiquitous Sensor Networks (USN), but its low efficiency poses a significant challenge to self-powered sensing. To address this issue, this study proposes a novel vortex-induced vibration piezoelectric energy harvester by installing the bio-inspired splitter plates (VIVPEH-B) based on the pore structure of gill lamella to improve the energy harvest efficiency and realize flow control. The experimental results demonstrate that installing the bio-inspired splitter plates with appropriate angles and porosity can effectively enhance the energy harvest performance of the PEH. Analysis of the flow field by the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) method reveals the internal mechanism by which installing bio-inspired splitter plates influences the energy harvest performance of the PEH and quantitative analysis of the flow control was achieved through spectral analysis. Furthermore, the proposed VIVPEH-B can drive a temperature sensor system for real-time environmental monitoring in experiments, enables the realization of self-powered sensing. In summary, installing the bio-inspired splitter plates can effectively enhance the energy harvest performance of the PEH, providing a viable solution for self-powering sensing in USN.