Piezoelectric harvester generates clean electricity directly from wheat farming

With the big strides of green technology covering the recent years, we have come across some fascinatingly innovative concepts. But there are few even among them that have that essence of adroit practicality combined with inherent credibility. In simpler terms, these seldom conceptions have the potential to appeal to the common man, and benefit him on a large scale. In relation to this, in our book the intriguing yet uncomplicated piezoelectric energy harvester certainly falls under this exalted category. According to industrial designer Benjamin Wright, the project entails the usage of emerging materials to efficiently contrive a sustainable and efficacious end product.

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Future Tech 8 Ways We Could Recycle Our Wasted Heat

Every electrical appliance — from a humble light bulb to a MacBook Pro — leaks precious heat. Electric companies love this fact. We, on the other hand, should be looking for solutions.

Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute teamed up with the University of Wollongong in Australia to design a new material that converts heat into electricity. They mixed zinc oxide nanoparticles (the material that makes sunscreen dry clear on your skin) with aluminum and heated it in a microwave for about three minutes. The zinc oxide conducts electricity and the aluminum makes it harder for the molecules to transfer heat. The difference in temperature between the two parts of the material sparks the electrons to start an electrical current.

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Five ways to harvest clean energy from trains

Trains are the world’s most popular mode of transport, even popular than cars due to their speed, accessibility and reasonable fare. Ever since the invention of the first railway engine, trains have served as the medium between far-off distances, inspired many artists, poets and writers and offered time-to-time luxury services for those who cannot spend a fraction of their time devoid of them.

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New heat-harvesting material made in $40 microwave oven

Virtually all electrical devices and industrial processes create heat as they operate, which is typically wasted. In the past several years, various thermoelectric technologies have been developed to address that situation, by converting such heat into electricity. The ideal material for the purpose would be one that has a high electrical conductivity, but a low thermal conductivity – that way, it could carry plenty of electricity without losing efficiency through overheating. Unfortunately, electrical and thermal conductivity usually seem to go hand in hand. With some help from an ordinary microwave oven, however, researchers from New York’s Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have created a nanomaterial that appears to fit the bill.

The team started with zinc oxide, which is already pretty well-suited to heat harvesting, as it is nontoxic, cheap, can have its electrical conductivity boosted, and has a high melting point. It is also, however, fairly thermally conductive.

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Microwave Ovens a Key to Energy Production from Wasted Heat

More than 60 percent of the energy produced by cars, machines, and industry around the world is lost as waste heat — an age-old problem — but researchers have found a new way to make “thermoelectric” materials for use in technology that could potentially save vast amounts of energy.

And it’s based on a device found everywhere from kitchens to dorm rooms: a microwave oven.

Chemists at Oregon State University have discovered that simple microwave energy can be used to make a very promising group of compounds called “skutterudites,” and lead to greatly improved methods of capturing wasted heat and turning it into useful electricity.

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Berkeley Researchers Say Carbon Pollution Can Be Turned Into Energy

It’s a beautiful thing when innovators take two problems and turn them into one solution. That’s the goal of a team of scientists out of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory who believe they can sequester carbon dioxide pollution while simultaneously using it to generate renewable energy. The project, which recently received a $5 million grant from the Department of Energy, would inject carbon dioxide that would otherwise be released into the atmosphere deep into the earth, where the temperature is 125 degrees Celsius. The gas would become “supercritical” at this temperature, taking on some liquid properties. It would then be pulled up and fed into a turbine that converts heat into electricity.

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How it works Heat activated fan

What is it:

When it comes to making new inventions, human beings have always been able to go beyond the imaginary. How unbelievable would it be if natural gas or stove could be used to run a fan? Sounds a bit weird but this is the reality, thanks to Garrett Wade. The world is desperately looking for alternatives to their needs so that they do not harm the environment and thus provide some ease to the ailing earth. This invention is surely a step towards an eco friendly technology. It is surely the right invention at the right time when the whole world is seeking electricity saving alternatives.

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MIT Researchers Invent Solar Cells That Transform Heat Into Electricity

If you thought photovoltaics can only get energy from the Sun, then you were wrong. An MIT team of researchers have invented a device that produces electricity from heat. The process uses the photovoltaic effect as the middleman and is three times more efficient than the most efficient lithium ion batteries on market today.

92 percent of all the energy we use involves burning something and then turning the heat into mechanical work. Therefore it would be much simpler and would make sense improving the whole process so it turns heat into electricity without involving moving parts.

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BioLite Stove Charges Your Phone While Cooking Your Dinner 2

Matylda Czarnecka

Wood-burning stoves aren’t known for being particularly efficient, and their smoke not only contains high carbon emissions but causes health risks to those who inhale it. A portable design from BioLite aims to tackle this problem and turn the stove into a cell phone charger in the process.

The stove converts heat energy into electricity, powering a small fan to improve the wood’s combustion. Beyond this, one to two watts are available to charge a cell phone or LED light via a USB port.

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