Computational methods for modelling piezoelectric wave energy converters

Overview

The piezoelectric effect, discovered in 1880, is the phenomenon by which some materials generate a voltage in response to an applied mechanical stress. Piezoelectric transduction holds significant potential for harvesting energy from the ambient environment, and of particular interest is the potential of these materials for harvesting the energy present in ocean waves. Such piezoelectric wave energy converters are well-suited to ocean monitoring situations and will reduce the present reliance on environmentally unfriendly lithium-ion batteries.

Hydroelasticity is the study of how deformable structures behave in moving fluids. In recent work, we have developed the necessary hydroelasticity models for simple piezoelectric wave energy converters within ocean waves. The wave energy converters consist of thin piezoelectric layers sandwiched either side of a flexible elastic substrate. Semi-analytical methods can be used to solve the hydroelasticity partial differential equations and determine the potential for power generation, but such an approach is limited to simple geometries.

We are developing numerical approaches for solving the relevant hydroelasticity partial differential equations to enable us to consider more interesting, real-world geometries. These approaches use the finite element method and the Julia package Gridap.

We are looking for students with an interest in computational mathematics, modelling, and high-performance computing. You will undertake research in the area of finite element models for hydroelasticity systems.

Projects could include:

• Investigating the effect of the seabed depth profile on plate motion and energy absorption
• Investigating the accuracy of different approaches for implementing far-field boundary conditions
• Investigating the energy absorption that is achieved with different piezoelectric plate geometries and piezoelectric material orientations
• Investigating the energy generation that can be achieved with multiple plates of different shapes and sizes

This project is related to Australian Research Council Discovery Project DP240102104, "Mathematical and numerical models of piezoelectric wave energy converters".

Research engagement

You will be involved in:

• Reading recent publications to gain an understanding of the current research in the field.
• Writing and running research code including on high-performance computing infrastructure.
• Creating visualisations of computational results.
• Communicating your work in written form.

Research activities

You will meet regularly with your supervisors to discuss ideas, research directions, and receive help and feedback.

Research skills

You will :

• Develop your understanding of numerical methods for partial differential equations.
• Gain experience in numerical software development with the language Julia and finite element package Gridap.
• Gain experience using of high-performance computing clusters.
• Gain experience in both written and verbal scientific communication.

Outcomes

The specific project aims can be tailored to your study level and personalised to suit your individual interests and skills.

Outcomes will include new code, simulation results, and a report summarising your progress over the course of the VRES project.

Skills and experience

Ideally, you'll have some prior experience with MATLAB or other programming languages (Julia, Python, C or C++) and will be keen to learn more about computational mathematics and high-performance computing.

Start date

2 November, 2026

End date

19 February, 2027

Location

QUT Gardens Point Campus

Keywords

• computational mathematics
• high-performance computing
• finite element methods
• hydroelasticity
• piezoelectricity

Contact

A/Prof Vivien Challis

07 3138 6735

vivien.challis@qut.edu.au