FUTURE TECHNOLOGY could mean you'll be able to charge your phone just by having conversations on it, thanks to engineers in South Korea.
The Telegraph reports that Dr Sang-Woo Kim of the institute of nanotechnology at Sungkyunkwan University in Seoul talked about at technique that turns energy from sound into electricity.
Kim said, "The sound that always exists in our everyday life and environments has been overlooked as a source. This motivated us to realise power generation by turning sound energy from speech, music or noise into electrical power."
This interesting use of sound uses small wires made of zinc oxide that are placed between two electrodes. A pad on top vibrates when sound waves hit it causing the wires to compress and release. This movement apparently generates an electrical current that can be used to charge a battery.
In addition to speech the method can supposedly harness other sounds like background noise and music to recharge the battery on your phone when it's not in use.
100dB of sound produces 50mV of electricity said Kim, who admitted this wasn't enough to charge a phone properly, but "by altering the material the wires are made from they will be able to produce more energy at lower sounds levels".
Average speech is considered to be around 60dB, significantly lower than the levels being used so far, but we like the idea that your phone could charge itself in your pocket when you're in loud situations like busy bars or nightclubs.
So don't throw away your charger just yet, as in our experience users make a phone call last, after texting or online communications.
The Telegraph reports that Dr Sang-Woo Kim of the institute of nanotechnology at Sungkyunkwan University in Seoul talked about at technique that turns energy from sound into electricity.
Kim said, "The sound that always exists in our everyday life and environments has been overlooked as a source. This motivated us to realise power generation by turning sound energy from speech, music or noise into electrical power."
This interesting use of sound uses small wires made of zinc oxide that are placed between two electrodes. A pad on top vibrates when sound waves hit it causing the wires to compress and release. This movement apparently generates an electrical current that can be used to charge a battery.
In addition to speech the method can supposedly harness other sounds like background noise and music to recharge the battery on your phone when it's not in use.
100dB of sound produces 50mV of electricity said Kim, who admitted this wasn't enough to charge a phone properly, but "by altering the material the wires are made from they will be able to produce more energy at lower sounds levels".
Average speech is considered to be around 60dB, significantly lower than the levels being used so far, but we like the idea that your phone could charge itself in your pocket when you're in loud situations like busy bars or nightclubs.
So don't throw away your charger just yet, as in our experience users make a phone call last, after texting or online communications.
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