Hygroelectricity
Table of Contents
Introduction
This new technology was recently discovered by accident, and isn't yet fully understood.
What is Hygroelectric Energy?
"Hygroelectricity is a type of static electricity that forms on water droplets and can be transferred from droplets to small dust particles. The phenomenon is common in the Earth's atmosphere but has also been observed in the steam escaping from boilers (see Armstrong effect). It was the basis for a proposal by Nikola Tesla to tap electricity from the air, an idea which has been recently revived.[1] Hygroelectric charge is the likely source of the electric charge which, under certain conditions such as exist in thunderstorms, volcanic eruptions and some dust storms, gives rise to lightning.[2][3]""
13:26 minute video introducing this new technology and talking about where it may go.
Tools & Apps
Organizations
Europe
Portugal
CATCHER Project "is aimed at the development of innovative technology to exploit atmospheric humidity for direct conversion to electricity. It is creating an efficient use of the new sustainable source for renewable energy and thus strengthens the EU leadership on renewables.
The successful realization of the project is assured by knowledge sharing within material science, physics, nanoelectronics, green chemistry, nanoengineering, sustainability, and research marketing, via international and intersectoral collaboration of highly qualified researchers and businesses from Portugal, Belgium, Austria, Spain, and Ukraine.
The project is targeted at the advancement, optimization, and scalability of a previously developed technology that converts atmospheric humidity into electrical current which will be ready for scaling up and further integration with existed EU electrical system for general energy use."
Grants & Funding
Asia
Livable Cities: Financing Partnership Facility "The urban operations of ADB benefits from the support of notable trust funds, which are collectively referred to as the Urban Financing Partnership Facility. Under this umbrella, strategic, long-term, multi-partner investments on innovative urban solutions are implemented. These investments help to achieve the vision of livable cities." These include:
Urban Climate Change Resilience Trust Fund (UCCRTF) eligible countries include Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, and Vietnam.
North America
USA
The Climate Pollution Reduction Grants (CPRG) Program "provides $5 billion in grants to states, local governments, tribes, and territories to develop and implement ambitious plans for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other harmful air pollution. Authorized under Section 60114 of the Inflation Reduction Act, this two-phase program provides $250 million for noncompetitive planning grants, and approximately $4.6 billion for competitive implementation grants."
Oceana
Australia
ARENA: Funding "From research to large-scale deployment, our funding spans the entire innovation chain. We accelerate the affordability of new technologies and build investor confidence in renewable energy projects now and into the future."
Western Australia
The Sustainability Grants Program (in the City of Cockburn) "offers funding for projects related to six sustainability themes. Open to small businesses, schools, not-for-profits, and collective households, successful applicants can receive up to $4,000 for their project."
Maps
International
KFW: Interactive World Map of Renewable Energy Interactive map shows the solar, wind, and hydropower usage of each country. Just click a country on the map, or select the name via the dropdown. Data accurate as of (at least) 2017.
Our World In Data: Share of Primary Energy from Renewable Sources, 2021 "Renewable energy sources include hydropower, solar, wind, geothermal, bioenergy, wave, and tidal. They don't include traditional biofuels, which can be a key energy source, especially in lower-income settings." Interactive maps shows current and historical renewables use with a pop up graph for each country.
Be careful with the pop up graphs on this page because they only go as high as the maximum current or historical percent level, meaning some graphs only go as high as 17% or 50% renewable energy in the grid mix, but will look much higher if you glance at them with the assumption each is set with a maximum of 100%.
Companies
Europe
Portugal
CascataChuva "Our humidity-to-electricity converter device combines at the micro-level a sequence- chain of physicochemical, physical, and electrophysical processes that take place on the interface of nanostructured oxide materials when interacting with water molecules from the surrounding atmosphere, thus enabling direct humidity adsorption – electrical energy conversion without consuming water.
Due to modularity, converter devices can be adapted to various appliances ranging from a large-scale energy production plant to a household or a non- profit organization in all environments where the relative humidity is over 30%."Nanomaterials R&D "is a manufacturing company. It makes a broad spectrum of dispersive and pressed oxide nanomaterials. The company’s work directs the creation of nanopowders for research investigation."
Ukraine
Nanotechcenter "Про компанію Компанію ТОВ НАНОТЕХЦЕНТР створено для застосування дослідно-промислових і лабораторних технологій виробництва нанорозмірних порошків різних речовин і призначення та їх комерціалізації.
Нанопорошки є сьогодні найважливішим високотехнологічним продуктом, потрібним для виробництва широкої гами наноструктурних матеріалів конструкційного, функціонального і біомедичного призначення."
Related Topics
Other Types of Green Energy
Biogas
Hydropower
Click the hydropower button for an overview of this type of energy harvest.
Dams
Dams unfortunately have massive negative impacts on wildlife and humans who's homes are often destroyed to create huge lakes. They disrupt river flows, preventing species like salmon and eel from reproducing, which in turn hurts other species throughout the food chain. Dams also create conditions that produce greenhouse gases.
Micro Hydro Turbines
These can be put in rivers creating a constant source of energy the the amount of energy can fluctuate throughout the year with different river conditions. The have been designed to be fish-safe.
Tidal
Tidal energy has many barriers to implementation and maintenance, but one key benefit is it's reliability.
Wave Energy
This is more prevalent than tidal energy which needs to be placed in some very specific locations, where tidal energy is easily captures, plus away from vital migratory routes, feeding grounds, and shipping lanes.
Wave harvesting equipment can float in a wide range of areas, and newer models are expected to work more efficiently in places with particularly high and rough waves.
Geothermal
According to Britannica, "form of energy conversion in which heat energy from within Earth is captured and harnessed for cooking, bathing, space heating, electrical power generation, and other uses. "
"... Normally, heat extraction requires a fluid (or steam) to bring the energy to the surface. Locating and developing geothermal resources can be challenging. This is especially true for the high-temperature resources needed for generating electricity. Such resources are typically limited to parts of the world characterized by recent volcanic activity or located along plate boundaries or within crustal hot spots. Even though there is a continuous source of heat within Earth, the extraction rate of the heated fluids and steam can exceed the replenishment rate, and, thus, use of the resource must be managed sustainably."
Heat Pumps
We haven't found a comparison of safety or efficiency for these yet rank this option relative to the others listed here, but here's what we have found!
Geothermal heat pumps have become much more efficient over the last 20 years. They cool spaces during cold months, and warm buildings or even water during colder months. Since heating water and cooling or heating buildings are the three greatest uses of energy in most buildings, this alternative to traditional heating and cooling units is expected to have a massive impact on our emissions. In fact tackling these issues could reduce global building emissions by around 30-40%.
Natural Gas
Natural gas warms our planet, and produced dangerous chemicals which can build up in our homes, harming our health.
Solar
Wind
Types of Energy Storage
We often think of batteries when we thing of storage, as well as the environmental issues such as mining and end-of-life pollution. However there are more options for energy storage than many people realize.
Click the Battery Technology button to learn more about these options and as well as which companies are already offering these solutions.
We try to focus on available technology and solutions that are already in use, but if you want to read about emerging technologies on the horizon, or maybe even being tested somewhere near you, then the article Novel Renewable Technologies That Could Power the Future lists a number that we haven't heard about anywhere else.
You may also be interested in some of our other pages covering related topics.
