Spongy Polymer Could Charge Phones with Car Vibrations

Feb-23-14 A new material that harnesses the vibrations from a surface, such as inside a moving vehicle, could allow drivers to charge their phones simply by placing them inside the car.

The material, developed by a team from universities in both the U.S. and China, is made of a piezoelectric polymer called ployvinylidene fluoride (PVFD). By depositing nanoparticles of zinc oxide onto a thin film of the polymer and the etching them off, the team was able to create pores in the polymer that gave it a sponge-like consistency. It is this spongy consistency that allows the material to harness energy from even small vibrations, such as those of a moving car. According to Xudong Wang, assistant professor of materials science and engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison: "The softer the material, the more sensitive it is to small vibrations."

The team believes the material could eventually be incorporated directly into housing of electroninc devices, allowing them to harvest energy from the slightest vibrations.

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[GIZMAG.COM]
[UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON]

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