Energy Harvesting

Magazine Archives

2023 January 2022 December November October September August July June May April March February January 2021 December November ...

Multi-Layer Nuclear Thermionic Avalanche Cell

The invention consists of several NTAC layers arranged in a radially concentric series separated by a vacuum gap space.

Organic Redox Flow Battery

Redox flow batteries are stationary batteries in which the energy is located in the electrolyte, outside of the cell itself, as in a fuel cell.

Electrolyte Additive Improves Battery Performance

The work could lead to improvements in the energy density of lithium batteries that power electric vehicles.

Energy-Saving Technique for Faster Communication Systems

Researchers have developed a technique that will allow for faster communication systems and better energy-saving electronics.

Beaming Clean Energy from Space

Once considered science fiction, technology capable of collecting solar power in space and beaming it to Earth to provide a global supply of clean and affordable energy is moving closer to reality. Through...

Liquid Metal Turns Motion into Electricity, Even Underwater

The soft and stretchable device converts movement into electricity and can work in wet environments.

2022 Create the Future Design Contest: Automotive/Transportation Category Winner — Betterfrost Ultra-Low Energy Defrost & Defog System

Betterfrost’s solution defrosts and defogs electric vehicles’ windshields with 20 times less power than current technology and extends the range of an EV by 38 km on an average commute in winter.

2022 Create the Future Design Contest: Sustainable Technologies/Future Energy Category Winner — SUNPave: Tomorrow’s Energy Today

When solar panels are placed horizontally, they harvest 15-20 percent less energy from the sun, and hence consumers end up paying a higher price for the harvested energy.

Biofilm Harvests Energy in Evaporation

The biofilm has the potential to revolutionize the world of wearable electronics, powering everything from personal medical sensors to personal electronics.

The Battery Powering a Truly Green Revolution in Personal Electronics

Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst recently announced that they have figured out how to engineer a biofilm that harvests the energy in evaporation...

New Products

New products for September 2022.

Enhancing Solar Option During Power Outages

Engineers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory have designed a novel building-solar controller that optimizes solar energy with smart technology to keep microgrids operating for up to five days.

Interuniversity Project to Design Wave-Powered Autonomous Robot

With the perpetual motion of its waves and tides, the Earth's ocean represents a highly predictable, theoretically limitless source of kinetic energy.

Piezoelectric Material Remains Effective at High Temperatures

The material remains effective as an energy harvester or sensor at temperatures to well above 572°F.

Ecological Power Storage Battery Made of Vanillin

Vanillin is converted into a redox-active electrolyte material for liquid batteries.

Method Helps Create Fuels from Plants

Scientists have been trying for years to create biofuels and other bioproducts more cheaply.

Photovoltaic Cell Increases Nighttime Power Generation

The device uses a thermoelectric module to generate voltage and current from the temperature gradient between the cell and the air.

Advancing Renewable Energy Production with Solar Thermochemical Hydrogen

Hydrogen has emerged as an important carrier to store energy generated by renewable resources, as a substitute for fossil fuels used for transportation, in the production of ammonia, and for other industrial applications.

Method Sprays Extremely Thin Wires on 3D Objects

Engineers have invented a way to spray extremely thin wires made of a plant-based material that could be used in N95 mask filters, devices that harvest energy for electricity, and potentially...

Sensors Converge 2022

Sensors Expo is returning to the McEnery Convention Center, San Jose, CA from June 27 – 29, with its new name — Sensors Converge. There are nine conference tracks that highlight the different applications for...

3D Printing Creates Environmentally Friendly Material Made of Algae

Living materials made by housing biological cells within a nonliving matrix have gained popularity as scientists recognize that often the most robust materials are those...

3D Printing of Wearable Devices

A hybrid method enables 3D printing of self-powered wearable devices.

Portable, Renewable Energy Technology

Pyroelectric energy generates energy from heat that would otherwise be wasted in a catalytic chemical reaction.

Tin Electrode Amplifies Supercapacitors

The material improves connectivity while maintaining recyclability and low cost.

Wearable Microgrid Harvests and Stores Energy from the Human Body

The flexible, washable microgrid uses the human body to sustainably power small electronics.

Implantable Stimulator Speeds Tendon Healing

The device combines with body power to treat tendon disease and damage, and sports injuries.

Nanothin Piezoelectrics for Self-Powered Electronics

The nanothin material could advance self-powered electronics, wearable technologies, and even deliver pacemakers powered by heartbeats.