It’s no surprise that as new and newer phones, tablets, notebooks, i-pads, i-pods and various other technological assets shoot up in the market, there’s one raging question that crosses everyone’s minds. It’s not about how much memory a phone can hold or whether the i-pod comes with inbuilt speakers, no even if the price of the i-phone has gone down – it’s the nagging question of whether these gadgets have enough battery time or not. Because just as state of technology rises, the battery power of it decreases, causing us to plug in our gadgets every single minute of the day.
So fear not – if your battery dies amidst the most crucial moment of your life. You can power it back on and save the day with the help of walking, fire and pee… Yes, pee. These three methods come from the green branch of technology that helps you save the environment and the battery of your gadgets.
The dream of losing calories and transferring it to your phone in the form of battery charge is one we all claim. The mission of accomplishing the very same was brought forward by the Georgia Institute of Technology who are harvesting kinetic energy or simply to put it ‘The power of movement.’ They built the first triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) which can convert mechanical energy into electrical energy.
Although many have put in the efforts to make such a charger, only the works of TENG has achieved a power output density reaching 300 Watts per square meter. TENG can be fitted into virtually any piece of clothing, floor mats, backpacks or foot pedals – you say it! And can harness the energy of every single one of our movements during the day.
This is the first time a team finds a way to harness and convert the energy of movement into usable power. The potential of the technology is huge, and this is why the scientists are looking for ways to make it commercial. If it ever hits the market, the technology will definitely transform the way we think about charging, or walking, for that matter.
Fire up your gadgets using the FlameStower – a charger (fully developed) that runs solely on fire (…and a little bit of water.) The FlameStower fire charger is an innovation that strives to charge cell phones, i-pods, LEDs, AA batteries and anything else that takes in a USB charge. It does all of this with the help of fire, be it from a cooking flame or a camping fire. It is set up to be a cost efficient charger in those places where electricity can be unstable and no other methods of charging can be employed. Other than this, it is a healthy way of saving resources and electricity for those with green minds. It is affordable and a very portable device for people all over the world.
With the FlameStower there is nothing that can let your gadget get off the battery grind other than the lack of fire. The usage is quite simple – it has a water back, to accommodate a little water which is necessary for the process. One has to extend this water back, then adjust the stand according to the height of the flame. As soon as this is done, connect the gadget’s USB to the FlameStower. Jut in the fire panel of the FlameStower into the mouth of the fire, and voila! The phone immediately begins to charge.
With the pee power, the research is still being carried out. However this seems to hold huge potentials. The pee charger makes use of a microbial fuel cell which requires bacteria to break down the organic matter and convert it into energy. Though it is true, that these organic matters don’t necessary need to come from pee, it is seen that urine (from all the other experimented elements) works best.
The idea of microbial fuel to generate power has been around since a long time. It was only after Dr. Leropolous’ team tried out urine to generate this power, that they acquired sufficient up run a smart phone. So it does seem like though there could be alternatives to the microbial fuel approach, only urine has enough capabilities of fulfilling the idea in the present time. This comes as no surprise since, urine is a chemically very active substance. It is rich in nitrogen and has compounds such as urea, chloride, potassium and bilirubin, which make it very good for the microbial fuel cells. Actually, urine is the only readily available substance used to scientist that seems to give out the desirable outcome.
Of course the ideas of plugging your phone into urine or fire may seem bizarre at the moment. But let’s not forget that these models at their initial stages of development and like all good technology they have a long way to go and excel. The prospect itself of having such alternatives at our disposal instead of electricity can be counted as a blessing.
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