Electricity from body movements: NANOGENERATORS
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Nanogenerators as the name suggests is a small chip which can be held in between our two fingers and can generate power equivalent to a typical AA size battery. We are now living in the nano-era where researches and developments are carried out at the nano scale. The problem with these nanodevices is that the powering source used,ie the battery tend to negate the size advantages of this nanodevices. So it is necessary to have power source also at the nano scale. This led to the development of nanogenerators. The basic building block of nanogenerators are nanowires. Nanowires are mainly made from zinc oxide through a process called hydrothermal synthesis. Nanowires have the same thickness as that of an average human hair. These nanowires are stacked together to form a nanogenerator.
Generating electricity naturally is of prime importance nowadays and nanogenerator is a perfect example of it. It works on the principle of piezoelectric effect. Nanogeneraors mainly converts body movements, blood flow etc to useful electricity. It can also be used to power various implants made inside the human body. The manufacturing cost of nanogenerators is very small. A nanogenerator that is held between two fingers can be used to light up an LED. Nanogenerators if stacked up together, can become a potential energy source. It can convert any form of mechanical stress or energy into useful electricity. It is available in three major configurations: LING, VING and NEG. The main applications include:
1. Self powered nano devices: Devices that recharge and power themselves will be using nanogenerators in the near future.
2. Smart sensors: Smart wearable systems can use nanogenerators as a power source.
3. Implants: Implants inside human body can be powered using nanogenerators as they are free from toxic substances and are very small.
4. Flexible devices: Nanogenerators can be implemented in any flexible devices so that the device can be charged when flexed or subjected to mechanical stress.
Nanogenerators, for sure will be an absolute trend in the near future. . .