A new type of material generates electrical current very efficiently from temperature differences. This allows sensors and small processors to supply themselves with energy wirelessly.
Materials Science
Nov 14, 2019
1
33322
(Phys.org)—A new study predicts that large-scale power plants based on thermoelectric effects, such as small temperature differences in ocean water, could generate electricity at a lower cost than photovoltaic power plants.
Researchers are coming to understand that the best performing materials in sustainable energy applications, such as converting sunlight or waste heat to electricity, often use collective fluctuations of clusters of atoms ...
Analytical Chemistry
Mar 7, 2023
0
10649
(Phys.org) —Ann Makosinski from Victoria, British Columbia, has an LED flashlight powered by body heat. This inventor has a flashlight that glows when she holds it. The story gets more interesting, though. She is 15 years ...
(Phys.org)—Paint these days is becoming much more than it used to be. Already researchers have developed photovoltaic paint, which can be used to make "paint-on solar cells" that capture the sun's energy and turn it into ...
To convert heat into electricity, easily accessible materials from harmless raw materials open up new perspectives in the development of safe and inexpensive so-called "thermoelectric materials." A synthetic copper mineral ...
Materials Science
Nov 8, 2022
0
2561
(PhysOrg.com) -- Among the many applications of flexible thermoelectric materials is a wristwatch powered by the temperature difference between the human body and the surrounding environment. But if you wanted this watch ...
New research has demonstrated that a magnetic uranium compound can have strong thermoelectric properties, generating four times the transverse voltage from heat than the previous record in a cobalt-manganese-gallium compound. ...
Condensed Matter
Mar 26, 2021
9
3031
(Phys.org) —By collecting heat energy from the environment and transforming it into electrical power, thermoelectric energy harvesters have the potential to provide energy for a variety of small electronic devices. Currently, ...
(Phys.org)—Currently, up to 75% of the energy generated by a car's engine is lost as waste heat. In theory, some of this waste heat can be converted into electricity using thermoelectric devices, although so far the efficiency ...
