An unusual source of renewable energy

According to new research, droplets of rainwater can produce electricity much more effectively using an innovative device

We are just beginning to find out that nature has provided us with numerous other resources apart from the ones that we already know of, to generate electricity which is clean, abundant and renewable. Technology has provided us a unique opportunity to harness the power of these resources. It was only recently that I wrote about “Anti-solar panels” to generate power even at night.

While there have been other attempts to convert rain into electricity like the study a couple of years ago, where Chinese researchers at Soochow University designed a solar panel that captured energy from raindrops, the most recent attempt by scientists might be the most effective solution yet.

Researchers at the City University of Hong Kong have developed a new device called droplet-based electricity generator (DEG), that can convert a single rain droplet to generate 140 volts — enough to power 100 small lightbulbs. The DEG features a field-effect transistor (FET) allowing high energy-conversion efficiency & power density which is a thousand (50.1 W/m2­) times more than its traditional contemporaries.

“Our research shows…