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Piezoelectricity
Nicholas Horn
Arch 509.001
Spring Semester 2009
Professor Timothy Brown
Abstract
Piezoelectricity is the ability of a material to create an electric charge across its surface
when the material is compressed or stretched. Piezo comes from the Greek piezein, meaning to
squeeze or press. (APC, 2002) Piezoelectric technology has been all around us for decades, it is
in many house hold items and without it many modern technologies would not be able to
function. It is used in sonar, microphones, ultrasound and most recently is being used to harness
kinetic energy from people’s movement and sound to generate electricity. (APC, 2002)
Early History
The Piezoelectric effect was first observed by Carolus Linnaeus and Franz Aepinus in the
mid 18th century. They found that certain materials, such as crystals and some ceramics, would
generate electric charges in the presence of a temperature change. (Wikipedia, 2009) This was
later to be found that the temperature change was causing the material to expand and contract
creating the same result as if the material had been compressed. René Just Haüy and Antoine
César Becquerel were the first to make the connection that the compression of a material lead to
an electric charge. Both René Just Haüy and Antoine César Becquerel subsequently attempted to
research the phenomena further but were unsuccessful. (Wikipedia, 2009) It was not until 1880
by the brothers Pierre Curie and Jacques Curie would successfully scientifically demonstrate the
piezoelectric effect in a laboratory setting. (APC, 2002) They were the first to begin to
understand the physics and mathematical theory behind the phenomena. They found that it was
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the crystal structure of the materials that was responsible for the piezoelectric effect. They were
able to demonstrate and observe the piezoelectric effect in many crystal materials such as
tourmaline, quartz, topaz, cane sugar, and Rochelle salt. (Safari, Panda, Janas, n. d.) For many
years the work of Jacques and Pierre Curie would not find much use in practical application,
however, one specific use of the piezoelectric effect would help Marie Curie (Pierre’s wife)
doctoral work. Marie's doctoral work, made use of a sensitive piezoelectric electrometer (an
instrument for measuring electric charges) constructed by Pierre and his brother Jacques. (Safari,
Panda, Janas, n. d.) Other than this one use the phenomena remained a laboratory curiosity. It
was not until World War I that it found its first practical applications. The technology was used
crystal vibrate) for early sonar.” (Wikipedia, 2009) Later in World War II the technology was
used to make impact-triggered detonators for bombs dropped from aircraft: striking the ground
Theory
The process of the piezoelectric effect occurs in materials when piezoelectric materials
are compressed along certain axes produce a measurable voltage on the material’s surface. The
charge arises when the materials that have no axis of symmetry are squeezed: the center of the
positive charge in the materials' ions is slightly separated from the centre of the negative charge.
This creates an electric field, which can be measured on opposite faces of the materials.
Similarly, applying an electric field across the faces induces the ions to move, and so deforms the
crystal. (APC 2002) This makes piezoelectric materials very useful for a variety of functions. It
only takes a very small amount of deformation to piezoelectric materials in order to create a
measurable voltage. (Yang, 2005) The reason piezoelectric materials work is due to their crystal
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structure how the positive and negative electric charges within the material are organized. There
are many different types of crystal structures: Triclinic, Monoclinic, Orthorhombic, Tetragonal,
etc. In many ways they are similar to the structure of magnets in that the electric charges are
poled and symmetrically distributed, however piezoelectric materials are not magnetic. As stated
before a piezoelectric material will generate an electric charge when compression is applied, this
forces the previously symmetrically oriented charges within the material to become disorganized
and not polarized resulting in an electric charge. The reverse process is also possible when a
piezoelectric material is subjected to direct current (DC) electricity. When this happens the
material will deform and the electric charges within the material will become polarized. (See
Image-1) It should be noted that when the electric current is applied to piezoelectric materials
the deformation is very small, usually only a fraction of a millimeter. The reverse is also true;
the force needed to create an electric charge from a piezoelectric material is very small. (APC
2002)
Mathematical Description
“Pi is the polarization generated along the i- axis in response to the applied stress sjk, and dkij is
the piezoelectric coefficient. For the converse effect, eij is the strain generated in a particular
orientation of the crystal on the application of electric field Ei along the i-axis.” (Safari, Panda,
Janas, n. d.)
(See Image-1)
Material Types
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In the early days of the technology only natural crystals were known to have the
piezoelectric effect. Many natural occurring materials express the piezoelectric effect. Some of
these materials include: quartz, cane sugar, rochelle salt, topaz, bone, tendon, wood, enamel and
dentin. (APC 2002) However, natural materials have their drawbacks including cost of the
material, refinement and limited ability to refine the raw material into usable sizes and shapes.
Advances in technology lead to the use of synthetic piezoelectric materials. The most common
synthetic piezoelectric materials are ceramics. Piezoelectric ceramics have perovskite crystal
structures and contain a metal ion usually titanium or zirconium. The contents of these elements
along with its tetragonal crystal structure give the ceramic its piezoelectric capability. (APC
2002) Piezoelectric ceramics have become the standard for industrial use. They are hundreds of
times more sensitive than natural piezoelectric materials, and can be produced in large quantities
and are more consistent in performance. They are also preferred because they can be produced
in different shapes and sizes making them adaptable to a variety of uses and functions.
Piezoelectric ceramics are also preferred because of their durability. They, like all type of
ceramics, are very strong. They are also chemically inert and weather well. This also makes
them particularly useful in a variety of climates and can be exposed to moderate weather and
humidity. Piezoelectric ceramics are produced by mixing fine powders of metal oxide (titanium
or zirconium) with organic binders and are then heated and put into molds and fired. The molds
can be a variety of shapes depending on the desired use. Common shapes can include rods, disks
and plates. After the shapes have been created the material has the necessary components of a
piezoelectric material, but in order for it to work properly it still needs its crystal structure to be
polarized. This is achieved by exposing the material to a strong DC electric field. After this
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process the material will retain the polarized structure until it is deformed, or compressed. After
Applications
Piezoelectric motors
Although much attention gets paid to the fact that piezoelectric materials can generate
electricity many applications have been made using the reverse piezoelectric effect. When
electric energy is applied to the material the material will deform. This deformation is very
predicable and will occur in the axis of the polarization. (APC 2002) Therefore, in
manufacturing piezoelectric ceramics you can create rods that deform in along the long axis and
act like a piston. (See Image-2) This creates very small motors that can be used for a variety of
- rectangular four-quadrant motors with high power density (2.5 watt/cm3) and speed ranging
(Wikipedia, 2009)
Actuators
passed through the piezoelectric material small changes in the width of the crystal structure are
made. The amount of deformation can also be controlled with the amount of electric energy
applied to the material. Since the deformations are so small, within micrometers precision, they
are excellent in uses that require very small amounts of movement. They have been used as tools
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for micro precision placement and for micro adjustments in lens for microscopes. ((Mason,
1981)
Sensors:
Detection of pressure variations in the form of sound is the most common sensor
application, e.g. piezoelectric microphones (sound waves bend the piezoelectric material,
creating a changing voltage) and piezoelectric pickups for electric guitars. A piezo sensor
attached to the body of an instrument is known as a contact microphone. One of the first
practical uses of piezoelectric sensor technology was the development of sonar during WWI.
Sonar was developed in France by Paul Langevin and was used to detect submarines. (Mason,
1981) Other sensors include microphones. Piezoelectric microphones can either be contact or
non contact microphones. Some can be used for musical purposes to detect and then amplify the
sound. Other types of vibration sensors can be used to detect or even generate energy from
sound. The generation of electricity from sound will be expanded on later. Other types of
vibration sensors are used to simply detect vibrations that could be detrimental to equipment or
structures. For example, engineers use them in engines to detect vibrations that could cause
transformed into a force, acts on two opposing faces of the sensing element. Depending on the
design of a sensor, different "modes" to load the piezoelectric element can be used: longitudinal,
transversal and shear.” (Wikipedia, 2009) These sensors could have practical applications in the
field of architecture and construction. They could be used to study stress or strain on building,
wind, and other external forces. This could help indicate the breakdown or even failure of
components of a building due to external strain. This technology is widely used in a variety of
engine technology measure and monitor vibrations. (Machine Design, 2006) Another aspect of
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vibration sensors is that they can also have a vibration dampening effect (Mason, 1981); because
they also generate small amounts of energy from their vibration dampening, they would do two
things at once, reduce vibration and generate electricity. This could also be used in an
architectural application in the future. For example, it could be used to reduce the vibration
experienced by a passing EL train in downtown Chicago, and then use the electric energy
generated by the vibration of that passing train to help power the building. Even though the
amounts of energy would be relatively small it is free, and would be otherwise wasted and
unused.
Piezoelectric senor technology as has been developed to create wireless strain sensors for
tracking damage on Navy helicopters. The U.S. Navy gave the company MicroStrain INC, a
S750,000 Small Business Innovation-Research contract to develop a wireless sensor for their
helicopters. “Piezoelectric materials generate power for the sensor by converting cyclic strains
batteries. By continuously monitoring strains on rotating components, the sensors can record
operational loads, compute metal fatigue, and estimate remaining component life.” The sensors
are self-contained and run their own “data-compression and fatigue algorithms,” this information
is then sent wirelessly to receivers onboard the helicopter and is downloaded later to engineers
and maintenance personal. (Machine Design, 2006) As stated before this could also be
employed to monitor venerable components in and on buildings as well, such as the curtain wall
system on a high-rise.
Generators
Piezoelectricity can generate very high voltages. The amount of pressure needed to
distort a piezoelectric ceramic element by 0.05mm can generate nearly 100,000 volts, however
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the current is very small. (Livewire, 2006) This amount of voltage is enough to create an electric
spark to ignite gas in an oven, grill or pocket lighter. The key factors involved in the amount of
energy produced by a piezoelectric material have to do with the stress on the element. “This is
the ratio of the applied force to the surface area of the element. When the composition of the
ceramic, the volume of the ceramic element, and the applied force are constant, the element that
has the smallest surface area will generate the most electrical energy.” (APC 2002)
Very high amounts of electric energy can be achieved with piezoelectric elements when
the amount of stress applied to the piezoelectric material is very high or very frequent. For
example, “a 2-kN force properly applied to a cubic-centimeter sized quartz crystal produces over
12.5 kV.” (Repas, 2008) The amount of energy will increase linearly with the amount of stress
applied to it, so the more pressure you put on the piezoelectric material the more power you will
get out of it. This has implications for uses in what as become called “energy
harvesting.”(Livewire, 2006) The idea being that energy from people walking, cars driving,
trains rolling on a track or people dancing on a dance floor can be captured via the piezoelectric
effect when devices are placed in the ground beneath the impact of the activity.
Devices for creating electricity from the an applied for have been around for awhile.
However, until recently these devices were used to detect stain and not necessarily to generate
electric power for the power itself. Now this technology is being looked at to generate power
that could be used to power a variety of systems in buildings. “In a typical quartz-based force
quartz elements are oriented to supply the same polarity voltage to the electrode when
compressed, while the opposite polarity is applied to the sensor housing.” (Repas, 2008) What
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makes this unit a little different than a typical quartz-based piezoelectric sensor is that the
assembly in housed “between two mounting disks held together by an elastic, beryllium-copper
stud and then weld-sealed within the enclosure to prevent contamination.” (Repas, 2008) When
an impact force is made on the impact cap the quartz elements generate a voltage which is
directed to the amplifier. Essentially these devices harness the kinetic energy stored in the
weight of the object impacting the sensor. In this particular case this device is for larger impacts
than some devices discussed later; reference POWERLeap and Sustainable Dance Floor which
use the typical weight of a human to generate electricity. Some engineers are researching how
these devices could be placed under train rails, or even streets, and parking garages. (Livewire,
2006) As discussed earlier, the amount of energy generated by piezoelectric devices is linear in
proportion to the amount of compressive force applied to them, therefore trains, and cars could
Some researchers are now looking at how piezoelectric devices can use heat exchangers
to turn heat into electricity. Physicists at the University of Utah have begun to develop “small
devices that turn heat into sound and then into electricity.” These devices are called
thermoacoustic prime movers. “Thermoacoustic prime movers hold promise for converting
waste heat into electricity, harnessing solar energy, and cooling computers and radar equipment.”
(Machine Design, 2007) The design of the device is a small cylinder-shaped tube that contains a
material with a large surface area, typically, fibers made from glass, cotton or steel wool. This
material is set between a hot and cold heat exchanger. When heat is applied to one end of the
cylinder tube air moves and produces sound at a single frequency, similar to hitting a musical
note on an instrument. The frequency of the sound produced depends on the length of the
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cylindrical tube, longer tubes will create lower tones, and shorter tubes will create higher tones.
At the end of these tubes the sounds waves impact a piezoelectric element which vibrates and in
Because these thermoacoustic prime movers lack moving parts they will require minimal
maintenance and will not breakdown over time. “Researchers say the devices won't create noise
pollution. Smaller versions under development convert heat to ultrasonic frequencies people
cannot hear. Second, sound volume goes down as sound converts to electricity. Finally, sound
absorbers placed around devices easily contain the noise.” (Machine Design, 2007)
These devices could be well suited in cold environments such as Chicago, where the
difference between the indoor and outdoor temperature in winter can be very high. “A 1.5-in.
long, 0.5-in. wide cylindrical resonator produces sound with as little as a 90°F temperature
difference between hot and cold heat exchangers.” (Machine Design, 2007) Although most of
these devices produce sound that would not be very loud “some prototypes produced sound at
piezoelectric devices discussed earlier, the more pressure you put on the piezoelectric element
the more power you can produce. Therefore, with louder sounds you can produce more energy.
Another way to get more power out of the device is to raise the air pressure. Doing this lowers
the temperature difference needed between heat exchangers to produce sound. This would allow
even the heat given off by computer to be to captured and converted into electric energy. This
could impact architecture in terms of cooling loads on buildings with large amounts of
computers. The energy captured could be used to help power fans and other cooling devices on
the computers reducing the amount of cooling energy that would otherwise have to be brought
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into the building. The key is that this technology is taking advantage of a wasted energy.
Another key aspect of these thermoacoustic prime movers is that in order for them to
efficiently convert heat to sound and electricity when multiple units are arranges in an array, “the
devices must be "coupled" to produce the same frequency of sound and vibrate in sync.” If they
are not in sync the devices will actually work against one another and not produce as much
Anther way in which to squeeze more power out of these devices is to create a “resonator
made from a 0.25-in.-diameter steel tube bent to form a ring about 1.3 in. across causes sound
waves to circle through instead of bounce off the ends as in a cylindrical design.” (Machine
Design, 2007) When this is done the devices are two times as efficient as the normal cylindrical
resonators in converting heat into sound and electricity. The reason for this is because the
pressure and speed of the air remain better synchronized with in the tube. (Machine Design,
2007)
The researchers of these devices at the University of Utah plan to use them to produce
electricity from the waste heat at a military radar facility and also at the hot-water-generating
plant. (Machine Design, 2007) “Thermoacoustic prime movers may also serve as a portable
way to generate electricity from heat that now escapes from nuclear-powerplant cooling towers.”
(Machine Design, 2007) These devices have great potential in harnessing otherwise wasted heat.
This is especially interesting in the field of architecture when some buildings actually have to
turn on the air conditioning in the winter because the internal heating loads from human body
heat and electronic equipment is so high. Essentially these devices could create a twofold
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advantage when it comes to energy in building with high internal loads, 1) they would need less
energy to cool the space and, 2) they could actually generate electricity for the building.
The green movement has placed new emphasis on using the technology to find a
sustainable way to harness energy from everyday movements such as walking on a sidewalk,
moving through a subway or train turnstile or dancing on a dance floor. “In 1996, Massachusetts
Institute of Technology Media Lab doctoral student Thad Starner wrote a paper about, “the
potential for energy harvesting from human activity.”” (Livewire, 2006) Architects have begun
to take notice of the potential energy harvesting: Claire Price the director of the Facility
involved in a project to design energy-harvesting floors and stairs for large public spaces. The
potential to create large amounts of energy is great in areas with high traffic. (Livewire, 2006)
This concept has become known as the Crowd Farm. The basic idea is that large mounts of
people moving in dense areas would step on tiles embedded in the floor and these tiles would use
piezoelectric materials to generate electricity that could be captured and used. (Livewire, 2006)
“A prototype of the crowd farm has already been tested in a railway station in Turin, Italy. Also,
a select number of Japanese train stations are currently generating small quantities of electricity
by capturing the motion through turn-styles at the ticket hub as commuters pass through them.”
(Livewire, 2006) The developers of the crowd farm hope to not just draw power from people,
they want to also raise people's awareness of the vast quantities of electricity that they consume
each day in various forms: "We want people to understand the direct relationship between their
movement and the energy produced," stated Thaddeus Jusczyk, co-creator of the MIT's crowd
The potential to generate large amounts of energy with the technology is great. “You can
convert about 3-6 watts per step. The Victoria train station in London has 34,000 people walking
through that space in one rush hour period. There are many kilowatts of energy that we could be
harvesting and putting back into low-power circuits and equipment." This could include audio
equipment, display screens, or about “6.5 million LED lights.” (Livewire, 2006)
Not all examples of energy harvesting are on a large scale. One smaller scale example is
scaled down version of the crowd farm concept. Envisioned as a flooring system for high-traffic
give pedestrians an active role in offsetting their energy consumption. (Triple Pundit, 2007) “I
am calling on all humans,” Redmond says, “to become responsible and sustainable self-
generators for the communal grid.”(Cavanaugh, 2007) Redmond has tested the idea on a
sidewalk in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The design is a series of glass tiles embedded in the sidewalk
with LED lights. When a person walks over the tiles pressure induces the piezoelectric effect in
the ceramic generators and the LED lights light up. (See Image-4) The POWERLeap design
“currently uses 2-inch by 1-inch piezoceramic (lead zirconate titrate) plates with a brass
reinforcement shim and are covered in nickel electrodes for low current leakage. When these
plates are bent the voltage (22 Vpeak) and current (24 microA) is induced and stimulates
momentary electrical energy impulses used to light the LED's inside each tile.” (Redmond n. d.)
Redmond notes that the commercial piezoelectric units she uses in her designs have a low power
output, but they allow her to begin to exhibit the potential of harvesting human energy. The key
she points out is in terms of scale. If you put a few dozen of these units in sidewalks that small
Currently Redmond acknowledges that the effect of the project is meant to bring
awareness to possibilities of the technology. Similar technology could be used in creative ways
to light buildings in exciting ways, or on a more practical level, provide emergency lighting for
corridors. The same technology could also be used instead to generate power to be stored for
later use. Redmond is currently in the process of designing a larger version POWERLeap with
the sponsorship of the flooring material manufacturer Mohawk Industries. (Redmond n. d.)
Another group exploring the idea of humans as the generators of their electricity is
Sustainable Dance Club. Located in the Netherlands, this group is interested in how
piezoelectricity can be used in a fun way, generating flashing lights on a dance floor as people
move upon it. They have developed a product called The Sustainable Dance Floor™. “The
energy produced by movement is converted into electricity that makes the dance floor react to
the dancer in an interactive way. The floor provides a unique visual experience on every energy
level, from ‘loading’ and ‘average’, to the maximum level of the evening. (See Image-5) All
visuals are a continuous real-time interaction between the clubbers on the floor, allowing every
individual’s actions to contribute to the collective experience.” (Sustainable Dance Club, 2007)
The design of the floor is a 650x650x195mm unit. Multiple units can be connected to
each other to create a dance floor. The units each generate a small amount of energy that is fed
back to a central “controller” unit that stores the energy and then sends it back to the units where
LED lights light up. (Sustainable Dance Club, 2007) Although this is a fun application of
piezoelectricity, the Sustainable Dance Floor, and POWERLeap, are ideas that could be used for
practical purposes, helping to supplement the power of buildings and their systems, especially
lighting.
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Conclusion
Piezoelectric technology started as a lab curiosity a little over a century ago. Scientists
examined an interesting phenomenon in natural materials but did not see its immediate practical
uses; today it has become an integral part of modern life. It is used in automotive engines, the
music industry, the defense industry, etc, however, one of the newer and more interesting aspects
of piezoelectricity in terms of the architectural profession is that it could help us with our energy
crisis. With a country that has to import much of its fuel, finding new ways to capture energy
and become more environmentally sustainable is essential. As someone who will soon enter the
profession of architecture and is interested in finding new ways to help the sustainable
movement, piezoelectric technology can help architects and city planners develop new ways to
capture energy. The key will be to pickup on the creative ways in how to employ the technology
Image Index:
Image-1
Image-2
Image-3
(Repas, 2008)
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Image-4
Image-5
References
A Sound Way to Turn Heat into Electricity. Machine Design.com: By Engineers for Engineers.
(2007c). Retrieved April 5, 2009 from: http://machinedesign.com/article/a-sound-way-to-turn-
heat-into-electricity-0712
APC International Ltd. (2002) Piezoelectric Ceramics: Principles and Applications. Mackeyville,
PA: APC Internation Ltd.
Livewire. The Age. (2006c) How piezoelectricity could change our lives. Retrieved March 10,
2009 from: http://www.theage.com.au/news/technology/plug-in-to-
piezoelectricity/2006/10/31/1162278147745.html?page=fullpage#
Machine Design.com: By Engineers for Engineers. (2006) Energy-harvesting Sensors Join the
Navy. Retrieved April 5, 2009 from: http://machinedesign.com/article/energy-harvesting-
sensors-join-the-navy-0914
Mason, W.P. Piezoelectricity, Its History and Applications. Jour. Acoustical Soc. Amer., (1981)
Safari A, Panda R, and Janas V. Ferroelectric Ceramics : Processing, Properties & Applications.
Piscataway, NJ. Rutgers University. Retrieved April 5, 2009 from
http://www.rci.rutgers.edu/~ecerg/projects/ferroelectric.html
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Triple Pundit. (2007c) Crowd Farm II: Piezoelectricity Potential. Retrieved March 5, 2009 from
http://www.triplepundit.com/pages/crowd-farm-ii-p.php
Yang, J. (2005). An Introduction to the Theory of Piezoelectricity. New York, NY: Springer
Science+Business Media, Inc.