The energy of wind, waves and body movement is a lot around, but it is not often used. The authors of the new work created
New development made from liquid metalan alloy of gallium and indium, which is immersed in a hydrogel - this is a soft, elastic polymer in which there is a lot of water. The water in the hydrogel contains dissolved salts - ions - they collect on the surface of the metal and can induce a charge in it.
If the area of the metal increases, then this creates a greater density for the attraction of the charge. This generates electricity, which traps the wire attached to the device.
Since the device is soft, any mechanicalmovement may cause it to deform. Therefore, it is universal for collecting mechanical energy. For example, hydrogel is elastic enough to stretch five times its original length.
Michael Dickey, article writer
During experiments, researchers discoveredthat deforming the device by just a few millimeters creates a power density of approximately 0.5 MW. This amount is comparable to other popular energy harvesting methods, but they cannot work in humid environments.
The authors of the new work are going to use their device to power wearable devices. Another project is to collect energy from ocean waves.
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