Nitinol Generator with 0.01-1 Wh/Day On Demand Output

This project is a subset of a larger project which has the goal of generating electricity from changes in atmospheric temperature through space and time. The near term goal is to provide a higly durable power source for agricultural sensors so that farmers will not have to change batteries or rely on brittle photovoltaic cells. Longer term applications include scaling the tecnology to power remote and limited use buildings, active road signage, and arctic and antarctic installations.The purpose of this project is to remove the greatest source of inefficiency in our proof of concept model--the attachment of nitinol wires into the framework of the generator. Previously, the wires had been clamped in place. However, the clamping was not very consistent, resulting in varying tension in the wires and a loss of the bulk of the work generated. By using the ring terminals, the wires will be able to be accurately cut and consistently attached to the generator so that each wire has the same amount of tension and the work output is maximized.We will be using tensile testing to determine the ultimate tensile strength of the attachments as well as optical microscopy to help evaluate the failure mechanism. Samples with good performance will be prepared again and tested for fatigue resistance, determining the true value to the cyclic nature of the generator.With the completion of this study, we can begin optimizing the generator to fit the various needs, as stated above. With the agricultural sensor application, the main benefit will be an overall cost redution in the use of crop monitoring sensors, which has the extended benefit of reducing the environmental impact of agriculture.