Inventors and engineers, seeing the need for portable power generation
that doesn't require daylight, have been hard at work coming up with
some creative ideas for alternative energy sources.
There are a bazillion solar-powered portable batteries on the
market. But they have this little problem: they need the sun in order to
work. Inventors and engineers, seeing the need for portable power
generation that doesn't require daylight, have been hard at work coming
up with some creative ideas for alternative energy sources. Let's call
them the Earth element batteries (or just call them awesome). Now you
can get a portable battery powered by wind, water, fire, and even mud.
Here's the science behind how these mini-generators work.
Fire Power The
FlameStower is a portable device that uses temperature variations to
generate electricity. It's based on a simple principle called the
thermoelectric effect. To put it in the most simplified way possible:
all you need is to put two materials that are effective at moving
electricity next to each other and add an electricity-capturing device
on one end. Then you heat one side and cool the other. Electrons move
from the hot side to the cool side (because they like to be where energy
is lower and heat has a higher level of energy, a concept you probably
know as diffusion). As they travel into the cool side they release heat
energy and voila! You have a battery. Yay physics! This method of power
generation is regularly used to power devices in space, where it's easy
to generate heat naturally with a decaying radioactive material while
subjecting it to the extreme cold temperatures of the vacuum outside.
The FlameStower
generator works over any flame or heat source (a cook stove, a
campfire, or even the stove in your kitchen). You simply put one end of
it over the heat, pour some water into the cold side to keep the
temperature there low, and plug in any USB device. They even have a
version that can charge your gadgets using a candle. Depending on how
powerful your flame is, the FlameStower can produce about 3w of power,
which its makers calculate out to about two to four minutes of talk time
on your phone for every one minute of charging. You can get one for $70
on their website and their candle charger, which will cost $99, is
expected to be available soon. Mud Power
This neat device is less portable battery and more science experiment. The MudWatt
is a DIY kit that allows you to take mud from anywhere, build a small
battery that sticks into the mud, and generate enough electricity to
power a series of small electronics like an LED light, a clock, or a
buzzer. Its purpose is to teach kids how power generation works, but
it's also a fun way to experiment with different types of soils and
ingredients to see which generate the most electricity. It works
by harnessing the power of microorganisms. Bacteria called shewanella
and geobacter live in nearly every type of soil or sediment on earth.
They eat sugars they find in the mud and release electrons as waste. The
mudwatt battery's anode, which comes into contact with the mud,
captures those electrons from the soil and transfers them up through a
wire to a cathode, which uses oxygen and protons to react with the
electrons and form water, which closes the circuit. It's basically a
way-better potato battery. The overall amount of energy generated
depends on the health of the bacteria colony in the mud--so
theoretically a MudWatt battery could last an eternity as long as the
bacteria continue to live and eat.
One
of the device's creators, Keegan Cooke, came up with the idea when he
worked as a microbiologist developing new fuel cells from bacteria he
collected in the deep ocean. He and his partner Kevin Rand have also
designed an app that allows you to track the health of your battery,
measure its output, and connect with other battery builders around the
world. The classic MudWatt is available at its website for $40 -- with
less complex (cheaper) and more complex versions coming soon. Portable Hydropower Plant A
hydropower plant has two main parts. The first is a turbine that spins
when water passes over it, generating kinetic energy and essentially
transferring the energy of the water movement into mechanical energy of
the spinning turbine. The second part is a generator, which captures the
mechanical energy of the turbine and converts it into electrical energy
that can be used to power anything that needs electricity.
The Blue Freedom mini-plant
works the same way, just on a much, much smaller scale. It uses a 12 cm
by 6 cm turbine that spins when you plop it into any type of moving
water (even shallow water). The turbine turns a rotor that powers a
generator located inside the O-shaped main housing. It generate 5 watts
of energy, which means that it can fully charge its 5,000 mAh battery in
about three to four hours (if the water is flowing about 3 mph). The
device also comes with a high-speed USB charging port and integrated LED
lamps to create light if you happen to be in the dark when your gadgets
go dead. The company recently completed a Kickstarter campaign and is
currently in the manufacturing stages. Portable Wind Turbine
Wind
turbines work a lot like hydropower plants -- except instead of water
spinning the turbine, which turns a rotor, which creates energy inside a
generator, the turbine is spun by the wind. There are a few companies
out there making small, portable wind turbines. One of the latest is
called the Trinity. This turbine
comes in a small 2 lb size and a larger 6 lb version. Each one folds up
into a small tube that makes it easy to transport. The smaller size
turbine has a 15w generator (and a built-in hand crank if the wind
doesn't happen to be blowing when you need power). It has 2 5v USB power
outputs and an internal 15,000 mAh battery. The unique design of
this particular turbine is in its blades. The three blades are flat,
long, and curved -- and they sit vertically on the round stand. That way
they can capture the wind, but still fold up into a neat little tube
for travelling. The devices creators believe that the vertical axis is
better for capturing wind coming from any direction, something that's
not the case in the traditional horizontal blade design. The team just
completed a Kickstarter campaign and is hoping to start shipping their
turbine by the end of the year.
About Unknown :
Beyond blogging and digital marketing , Unknown is an entrepreneur at heart who has made his hobby turned passion. Becoming a blogger, It was the most important part of his journey.
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