By Susan Kraemer •
September 13, 2009
It’s easy to power a single-story buildings-worth of electrical needs with a solar roof, but what about the power needs of skyscrapers? They have so little roof space available on top compared to their 40 or 50 floors-worth of electrical needs underneath them.
Here’s one idea. Why stop at sunlight to power solar cells. Let’s harness our fluorescent lighting as well.
New Energy Technologies is trying to develop a solar cell that makes electricity just from that nasty fluorescent tube lighting buzzing over your head.
By Mariella Moon •
July 27, 2009
A two year study led by the University of Leeds in the UK aims to develop a system that can harness kinetic energy from marching soldiers.
The $1.5 million plan will focus on finding a way to convert human energy into usable power for military field applications. It is part of the larger “battery-free soldier” project that also includes development of solar and body heat-harvesting technologies for the military.
Soldiers carry around electronic equipment such as large flashlights, and power sources in the form of batteries can weigh as much as 10 kilograms of a foot soldier’s usual 75 kilogram pack. Clearly, having a power source they can carry around will be beneficial. Research leader Professor Andrew Bell of Leeds says,
“As well as the obvious green issue of using so many batteries, [the system] could also reduce a soldier’s pack weight by around 15 per cent. And this technology could potentially have lots of applications in civvy street too.”
Stopping for cheeseburgers to bring new energy to New Jersey drive-thru
On the same day that Coulomb Technologies announced it would be rolling out an electric vehicle charging station at a McDonald’s in Cary, N.C., a Burger King franchise in New Jersey said it would be testing speed bumps that harness kinetic energy in the location’s busy drive-thru lane.
If the kinetic energy generated by moving vehicles was captured by New Energy Technology’s MotionPower speed bumps twice per day, then it could produce enough electricity to power over half a million homes each day, according to company officials.
