... that it might just be crazy enough to be another 'free energy' breakthrough.
For the days when the sun simply won't shine and the cats and dogs are falling from the overcast sky in bucket-loads, how about a mechanism for generating electricity from raindrops? As reported in PhysOrg.com, scientists from CEA/Leti-Minatec, Grenoble, France, have "recently developed a system that recovers the vibration energy from a piezoelectric structure impacted by a falling raindrop. The system works with raindrops ranging in diameter from 1 to 5 mm, and simulations show that it’s possible to recover up to 12 milliwatts from one of the larger 'downpour' drops."
What they have to do now is work out a way to store the recovered electrical power in order to provide a steady current for day to day use.
Altogether now - 'I'm generating in the rain, just generating in the rain, what a beautiful feeling ........'
1 comment:
It's a cute story, and has cropped up everywhere, from Reuters to TreeHugger.
Actually, it would be good to get a decent scientific/engineering analysis on its feasability.
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