Date of Award

January 2021

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Mechanical Engineering

First Advisor

Djedje-kossu Zahui

Abstract

Sensors are employed for various applications in different industries. Chief of these applications is in the process and equipment monitoring. Most sensors used in the equipment monitoring are mostly after-market devices. This research answered the question of how can we include the condition monitoring of equipment into the design phase of the equipment. This research developed a dynamic force sensor using a PolyVinyliDene Fluoride (PVDF) film. The piezoelectric film attached to a fixed-fixed substrate which serves to support film and the properties of which the sensor equations were based. The sensor was tested in the laboratory by subjecting it to harmonic and random excitations of different magnitude and frequencies.The measured force as obtained from the sensor is compared to the corresponding excitation force in plots. The results obtained show that the sensor is accurate with an error of about 7% for an excitation with a frequency lesser than the first natural frequency of the substrate of the sensor. This result shows that dynamic sensors using piezoelectric materials can be designed and adapted to any application with the selection of the right substrate and boundary conditions.

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