ABSTRACT
The energy harvesting based on piezoelectric composites has great potential for several applications such as embedded microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices. Consequently, this chapter discussesthe effect of Lead ZirconateTitanate (PZT) volume fraction inserted in the polyamide-6 matrix (PA6) on dielectric, piezoelectric and mechanical properties of PA6/PZT composites. As the first result, we noticed in this chapter that the addition of PZT microparticles increases the relative permittivity of the PA6 matrix from 10 to 95,8. The dielectric property studies expose that the remnant polarization has also increased from 0.17 to 0.4 under an electrical field of 1 kV.This comportment is related to both the increase in the volume fraction of PZT from 20 to 40 % and the piezoelectric coefficient changes consistently to that of the volume fraction of PZT. Additionally, SEM analysis has confirmed the homogeneous dispersion of ceramic PZT microparticles into the polyamide matrix. These three-phase composites could be utilized for energy harvesting, actuating and sensing applications.
