While the global pandemic has created an uncertain future for renewables, new discoveries are giving researchers hope for a greener tomorrow. According to a pair of recently published studies from Tel Aviv University, two naturally abundant resources—plants and humidity—may revolutionize renewable energy in the future by generating electricity.
Can Plants Generate Electricity?
One of the studies revealed that plants, which contain chlorophyll, may be able to act as natural solar panels. However, scientists are still determining how the electrical currents of plants can be “plugged into” man-made devices.
“At home, an electric current can be wired to many devices. Just plug the device into a power outlet,” Iftach Yacoby, head of The Laboratory of Renewable Energy Studies at Tel Aviv University’s Faculty of Life Sciences, told CTECH. “But when you want to do it in plants, it’s about the order of nanometers. We have no idea where to plug the plugs. That’s what we did in this study.”
By using a hydrogen-producing enzyme to “sit in the socket” of the plant cell, the researchers proved that they possess a socket for everything. Even though it was nanotermically-sized, previously it was just a theory. The researchers believe they will now be able to engineer any type of plant or kelp with the purpose of energy production.
Yacoby told CTECH that he wants to use plant enzymes to create ammonia, a compound traditionally used in fertilizers, that doesn’t pollute the environment. “If we can get plants to produce ammonia on their own, we don’t need to produce fertilizer at all. We can give up nitrogen fertilizer and allow plants to use nitrogen in the air without fertilizer,” he said.
While the technology is promising, it won’t be economical for at least another ten years.
Water Vapor May One Day Charge Batteries
According to another study from Tel Aviv University, water vapor from the atmosphere may one day be harnessed to charge batteries.
Water is able to naturally generate electricity. For example, during thunderstorms, lightning forms along the various stages of cloud formations—beginning with water vapor and then transitioning to droplets and ice.
In the 1800s, physicist Michael Faraday revealed that metal surfaces can be charged with water droplets. This occurs when there is friction between them.
Knowing that water vapor can create electrical charges during molecular collisions and generate static electricity through friction, the researchers performed an experiment. They sought to identify the voltage between two separate metals when exposed to humidity. They exposed one of the metals to high relative humidity, while keeping the other metal grounded. When the air was dry, there was no charge. When they elevated the humidity to over 60%, however, it did generate a voltage. This voltage then dissipated when they lowered the humidity.
The findings contradict traditional thinking about humidity as it pertains to electricity. While water is considered an effective conductor of electricity, it has not traditionally been seen as a way to produce charges on surfaces. “However, it seems that things are different once the relative humidity exceeds a certain threshold,” Professor Colin Price told Science Daily.
According to the findings, it may be possible for humid air to charge metal surfaces to roughly a single volt.
“If a AA battery is 1.5V, there may be a practical application in the future: to develop batteries that can be charged from water vapor in the air,” Price said. “The results may be particularly important as a renewable source of energy in developing countries. In these areas, many communities still do not have access to electricity, but the humidity is constantly about 60%.”
In other words, given the abundance of humidity in warmer climates, the technology could potentially serve as an endless source of renewable energy in poorer regions that need it the most.
Connecting Distributed Energy Resources
Leveraging distributed energy resources (DERs) and microgrids can help countries reach their renewable energy goals.
Introduction to IEEE Std 1547-2018: Connecting Distributed Energy Resources is a course program that focuses on IEEE Standard 1547-2018. This standard provides technical specifications for interconnection and interoperability between utility electric power systems (EPSs) and distributed energy resources. It also provides requirements relevant to the performance, operation, testing, safety considerations, and maintenance of the interconnection.
Contact an IEEE Content Specialist today to learn more about getting access to these courses for your organization.
Do you want to learn more about Standard 1547 for yourself? Visit the IEEE Learning Network.
Resources
American Friends of Tel Aviv University. (9 June 2020). Water vapor in the atmosphere may be prime renewable energy source. Science Daily.
Kabir, Omer. (8 June 2020). The sun’s rays can electrify plants into producing renewable energy, study finds. CTECH.
Today’s modern smart grid connects a variety of distributed energy resource assets to the power grid. This creates a diverse and disparate system, which both individuals and power companies can impact, with enormous benefits. Distributed energy collection assets (such as solar panels) are essential to increase the use of green energy, which helps the environment and can reduce costs. Furthermore, consumers have greater insight into their energy usage through modern smart grid technology, allowing them to better conserve energy.
However, an individual’s increased access to the grid can jeopardize the security of the entire system.
Consumers Putting the Smart Grid at Risk?
Because they are often installed and controlled by the consumer, distributed energy resources can put the power grid as a whole at risk. For example, consumers who do not properly secure their devices and/or networks are prime targets for attack. If there are enough compromised devices on a smart grid, bad actors can destabilize the power system and cause significant damage.
Efforts to Increase and Standardize Smart Grid Security
There are efforts underway to increase the security of the smart grid in order to harness the benefits while avoiding the security pitfalls. For example, the European Network for Cyber Security (ENCS) and the European Distribution System Operators’ Association (E.DSO) recently released suggested cyber-security requirements for smart meters (SM) and data concentrators (DC). These guidelines help network operators choose SMs and DCs that enhance security of the smart grid. By creating a consistent set of requirements, smart grids across Europe have a built-in baseline of security.
Planning a Secure Smart Grid
In order to avoid catastrophic results, today’s smart grid operator needs to have a plan in place that accounts for security.
As Ed Wood, CEO of Dispersive Networks, writes in SC Magazine, “Attack-resilient, secure virtual IP networks can be designed and rolled out, which will enable utilities to ensure a more secure overall grid. Advanced virtual networking software that offers the highest level of security is available today and can be integrated directly into Distributed Energy Resource assets, enabling them to ‘plug-n-play’ into ultra-resilient virtual cloud networks. Leveraging the processing and memory of these devices and the public Internet is essential to lowering costs.”
This tactic can help secure the smart grid while taking advantage of the environmental and cost-saving benefits of distributed energy resources.
Modernizing the Smart Grid from IEEE
Want to learn more about the smart grid? Check out Modernizing the Smart Grid, a new 4-course online learning program from IEEE.
One of the biggest frontiers in electrical engineering today is the development and implementation of smart grid technology. Fueled by the global demand for greener technologies and alternative fuels, environmentally-friendly smart grid technology can stimulate stagnated economies. It also has the potential to change the way power is delivered to electricity consumers around the world.
Modernizing the Smart Grid, now available on the IEEE Learning Network, is designed to get you and your team up to speed quickly on the latest smart grid technologies. Interested in bulk discounts for your organization? Contact us today, and we’ll put you in touch with an IEEE Account Specialist.
Resources:
Wood, Ed. (18 Jul 2019). How Securing DER Smart Grids Differs from Securing Traditional Energy Grids, and Why it Matters. SC Magazine.
SmartCitiesWorld News Team. (23 Jul 2019). Europe seeks to harmonise smart grid security requirements. SmartCitiesWorld.
The global water crisis is causing problems worldwide. The United Nations estimates that 2.1 billion people do not have access to safe drinking water in their homes. This is relevant because those with access to clean water have a higher chance of leaving poverty, resisting disease, and seeking an education. The water crisis has severe implications that can limit health and economic prosperity.
Furthermore, scientists predict that droughts will become more frequent and severe in the upcoming century in the face of climate change. Increased droughts could spark violent conflicts in water-stressed regions. Fortunately, researchers are working toward solutions that will provide clean drinking water to even the most remote corners of the globe.
Potable Water from Salt Water
Desalination technologies are quickly becoming a necessity in at-risk areas. The most widely used desalination processes use reverse osmosis. Although reverse osmosis is energy efficient, it doesn’t work strongly on water with very high saline contents. Other desalination processes use external heat sources. However, these are not always readily available.
To make desalination viable for widespread use, the technology must become more energy-efficient and less costly. At the same time, it must not require chemicals that could detrimentally affect the environment or human health.
Researchers from a multi-institutional engineering research center based at Rice University called NEWT, Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment, have a solution. They are developing a system that can be utilized in remote and domestic environments. Known as nanophotonics-enabled solar membrane distillation (NESMD), this system works with solar energy and nanoparticles to make saltwater drinkable.
“The integration of photothermal heating capabilities within a water purification membrane for direct, solar-driven desalination opens new opportunities in water purification,” says Menachem Elimelech, NEWT’s lead researcher for membrane processes.
The NESMD system uses a heat source is the membrane itself. Nanoparticles embedded on one side use sunlight to heat the water and operate the desalination process.
“Instead of heating the water before it comes into the module, you heat it on the membrane surface itself. One of the big advantages is that it can be used anywhere because it’s dependent on sunlight,” explains Akshay Deshmukh, a Ph.D. student in Elimelech’s lab at Yale.
This technology is still in its early stages. Potential uses include treating water from fracking and gas extraction operations as well as household water in less developed areas.
Starch and Solar
NEWT is not the only research center exploring water-related applications of solar power. In China, researchers at Dalian University of Technology are looking at another form of solar technology to produce drinking water. The research team is implementing the use of carbon nanosheets made from starch. This material is abundant, inexpensive, renewable, and doesn’t require hazardous materials.
These carbon nanosheets connect the desalination process to solar energy. The nanosheets are fashioned into electrodes for a capacitive deionization (CDI) system, which combines the desalination process with energy storage for maximum energy efficiency. While CDI is not a new field, this research has resulted in improved energy efficiency, cost savings, and safety.
The CDI desalination process occurs in two phases. The first phase consumes energy while the second phase generates energy. Because the energy can be stored and can actually be used to partially power the first phase, it results in huge efficiency gains. Pairing CDI systems with solar panels could facilitate their implementation in areas without electric grids while reducing fuel costs and greenhouse gas emissions.
The system must be refined before being brought to market. However, it’s a promising step toward bringing clean water to vulnerable communities worldwide. Furthermore, the researchers’ holistic approach illustrates the importance of considering energy efficiency, convenience, and safety when designing new technologies.
Drinking Water from Air
Startup Zero Mass Water makes solar panels that use the air to make drinkable water. The panel arrays, known as Source, collect water vapor from sunlight. It is then sterilized, converted into a liquid, and saved in a reservoir.
Source is available in eighteen different countries, from an orphanage in Lebanon to estates in California. Each solar panel is about $2,500 including installation. The panel delivers about two-five liters of water daily, equivalent to ten water bottles.
Zero Mass Water delivers its product to at-risk communities through its relationship with developers, local governments, and nonprofits.
Cody Friesen, a material scientist and CEO at Zero Mass Water, is a former engineering and materials science teacher at Arizona State University. He feels the company is a solution for the world’s water crisis, including poverty-stricken regions such as Morocco, Egypt, and India.
According to Friesen, “Today it takes far less energy (effectively none, since it’s entirely solar-powered) to create drinking water with Source than any other mechanism.”
What technologies do you think are most promising for combating the global water crisis?
What’s Next
The global demand for greener power sources and alternative fuels has helped spur environmentally friendly smart grid technology. Smart grid is able to stimulate stagnant economies by changing the way power is delivered to electricity consumers around the world.
Get your team up-to-date quickly on the latest smart grid technologies with Modernizing the Smart Grid, a four-course program from IEEE. Courses include:
- Strong Grid Before Smart Grid
- Smart Distribution Systems
- The Digitized Grid
- Engaging Consumers in the Smart Grid Marketplace
Click here to learn more about getting access to these courses for your organization.
Resources
Alblaghti, Eva. (6 Feb 2018). Clean water and green energy: Making desalination practical. Yale Environment Review.
Bendix, Alex. (8 Jan 2019). These $2,000 solar panels pull clean drinking water out of the air, and they might be a solution to the global water crisis. Business Insider.
Goode, Lauren. (28 Nov 2017). How Zero Mass is using solar panels to pull drinkable water directly from the air. The Verge.
Weir, William. (23 Mar 2018). Using solar power to bring clean drinking water to remote areas. Yale News.