“Piezo-Rubber chip” to Harness Energy from Body Movements

Chip that generates electricity when flexed

Chip that generate electricity when flexed

The idea of harnessing natural body movements to generate power is rapidly becoming stale. That is thanks to the revolutionary concept of piezoelectricity. This time around it’s a rubber film that has been invented that could utilize body movements like breathing and walking to generate enough energy to power pacemakers, mobile phones and other electronic devices.

Like to know more about the rubber film?

The material consists of silicone rubber sheets and ceramic nanoribbons (nanostructures or nanotubes that take the form of thin ribbons) are embedded in it. When this material is flexed it is capable of generating electricity. It is highly efficient at converting mechanical energy in to electrical energy! How efficient? Up to 80%!

Structure of piezo-rubber chip structure

Top: The process piezoelectric nanoribbons are peeled off a host substrate and placed onto rubber. Middle: Photograph of the piezo-rubber chip. Bottom: Schematic image of the energy harvesting circuit (Image Courtesy: Michael McAlpine/Princeton University)

Here’s the core of the technology in more detail…

The nanoribbons are made of lead zirconate titanate (PZT). This is a ceramic material that is piezoelectric. Thus when pressure is applied to it, an electric voltage can be generated by this material. It is said that of all the piezoelectric materials in existence so far, PZT is the most efficient. Apparently it is 100 times more efficient than quartz which is another piezoelectric material. That 80% conversion efficiency certainly backs up that claim.

So why is this efficiency important? When a person is walking or breathing not a whole lot of power is generated. So it is important that a high percentage of it is converted.

These nanoribbons, or strips of nanotubes are extremely thin. Just how thin? 100 of them can fit side-by-side in a space of a millimeter.

Silicone is a biocompatible device. Not sure what that means?
Well… a biocompatible material is a natural or synthetic material that can replace part of a living system or function in close contact with living tissue. Silicone is already used for cosmetic implants and medical devices. Thus the new power generating rubber sheets are also biocompatible.

So what’s the potential for this new material?

Shoes made of these rubber sheets can potentially harness the energy of walking and running to power mobile electronic devices like mobile phones and MP3 players.
Even more significant is that when placed against the lungs, these sheets could harness the breathing motions to power pacemakers, eliminating the current need for surgical replacement of batteries.

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