Transparent Film Harvests the Motion of Water

Apr-22-14 Energy-generating toilets may not be far away, thanks to a transparent, flexible film able to harness the motion of water and convert it into electrical energy.

Youn Sang Kim and his team created the film by adapting a transducer using dielectric materials. Submerging the dielectric materials in water causes a double layer to form around their outside, and variations between that layer and the water will generate an electric charge. The team has demonstrated that the motion from a 30 ml droplet of water is enough to power an LED.

The electrodes used in the technology are flexible and transparent, so they could be applied windows and roofs as well as toilet bowls—anywhere they can capture the energy of raindrops and moving water.

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