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Micro Energy Harvesting?

Energy is everywhere in the environment around us - available in forms such as solar (light), wind, thermal and mechanical. Where this energy is found in concentrated amounts you will often find large-scale electricity generation taking place, such as wind and solar farms. In fact, energy harvesting dates back to the windmill and waterwheel!

However, the majority of energy around us is often found in such minute quantities that it cannot supply adequate power for any viable purpose. In fact, until recently, it has not been possible to capture such energy sufficiently to perform any useful work.

Micro-energy-harvesting is the process of capturing small amounts of energy from one or more of these naturally occurring energy sources, accumulating them and storing them for later use. The key components of any energy harvesting system are:

1. An energy source
2. A conversion device that translates the energy into electricity
3. A harvesting module that captures, stores and manages the electricity
4. An end application

Recent technological advancements have increased the efficiency of devices in capturing trace amounts of energy from the environment and turning it into electrical energy. Microprocessor improve-ments have increased the power efficiency of the system, which reduces the amount of power a device needs to draw from the supply. 

The driving force behind these changes is the desire to power small mobile devices without the requirement of batteries.

If we can effectively harvest tiny amounts of energy from (essentially inexhaustible) natural resources it is not only good for the environment, but will also reduce reliance on batteries. It could also potentially be used as an alternative energy source to supplement a primary power source, enhancing the reliability of the overall system and even potentially preventing power interruptions.

Common Sources of Energy Harvesting

• Mechanical Energy - from sources such as vibration, mechanical stress and strain
• Thermal Energy - waste energy from furnaces, heaters, and friction sources
• Light Energy - captured from sunlight or room light via photo sensors, photo diodes, or solar panels
• Electromagnetic Energy - from inductors, coils and transformers
• Natural Energy - from the environment such as wind, water flow, ocean currents, and solar
• Human Body - a combination of mechanical and thermal energy naturally generated from bio-organisms or through actions such as walking and sitting
• Other Energy - from chemical and biological sources

NEW ZEALAND ENERGY HEADLINES 

Around the world on solar rays (and Kiwi ingenuity)

Indonesia provides geothermal opportunity 

Lying on the Pacific's rim of fire, New Zealand and Indonesia share a history of not just earthquakes but massive volcanic activity. New Zealanders have become world leaders in harnessing it to produce electricity. They have also been sharing that expertise with Indonesia for more than 35 years. Arriving in Indonesia in 1974, Mike Allen was among the New Zealanders who pioneered geothermal power there as part of an aid programme. Read More

Contact calls halt to Clutha hydro plans 

Contact Energy has withdrawn plans for further hydro development on the Clutha River and will review management and ownership of its land holdings near the river. The decision, announced recently, comes after Contact signalled in February delays in its plans for a new hydro-generation facility on the Clutha, saying the project was on the "back burner" and geothermal energy remained a priority. Read More

Carbon tax repeal would take years   

To repeal Labor's price on carbon is the Opposition Leader, Tony Abbott's, ''pledge in blood''. With polls putting Labor's primary support at below 30 per cent, it is a prospect that needs strong consideration. But the Minister for Mental Health and Ageing, Mark Butler, says promises to repeal complicated laws are difficult to achieve. Read More

Going green provides multiple benefits, property industry told

Pay-as-you-go solar panels are proving a hit 

Home owners will be able to avoid the initial cost of solar panels, and future electricity price rises, under a pay-as-you-go offering that has been a hit in the US. Private equity-backed Sungevity Australia, a partnership between Lismore solar installer Nickel Energy and San Francisco's Sungevity, will initially offer the product, called Roof Juice, in northern NSW and Queensland, and extend it nationally by the end of the year. In the US, the pay-as-you-go model has been a ''game changer''... Read More

WA to launch world-first wave energy project 

The first wave energy project in the Southern Hemisphere is set to commence operation in Western Australia next year, with the federal government announcing almost $10 million in funding recently. WA-based energy company Carnegie will begin construction of Australia's first commercial scale grid-connected wave project next year, which will be located on and around Garden Island, with power delivered by the end of 2013. Read More

Lasers to measure extent of cattle burps

Scientists from the University of Melbourne lead a group of researchers from five Australian universities and Canberra teaming with the CSIRO's Sustainable Agriculture Flagship to measure and manage methane emissions from burping livestock. Read More

INTERNATIONAL ENERGY HEADLINES 

Gassy dinosaurs helped to warm Earth

A new study suggests that dinosaurs may have helped keep an already overheated world warmer with their flatulence and belching 200 million years ago. The research published Monday in Current Biology suggests that large dinosaurs made a significant contribution to the greenhouse effect back then. Read More

How corpses could power a television

A British crematorium wants to install turbines in two of its burners which would use the heat generated during cremation to provide enough electricity to power 1500 televisions. A third burner is to be used to heat the site's chapel and offices. The scheme in Durham would be the first of its kind in Britain, but experts say it could be followed by similar projects. Read More

Massive Carbon-Capture Facility Spawns Skepticism and Hope

The world's largest facility for filtering carbon dioxide out of industrial emissions was inaugurated in Norway recently. While some see it as a godsend in efforts to reach environmental targets, others find the technology too dangerous and expensive. Read More

The End of US Clean Energy Subsidies? 

The federal government has given generously to the clean energy industry over the last few years, funneling billions of dollars in grants, loans and tax breaks to renewable power sources like wind and solar, biofuels and electric vehicles. "Clean tech" has been good in return. During the recession, it was one of the few sectors to add jobs. Read More

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