Nanogenerator Creates Electricity from Snowfall

The team of researchers from the University of California, Los Angeles reveal that their snow-based triboelectric nanogenerator — snow TENG as they refer to it — uses static electricity to generate charge.

Nanogenerator creates electricity from snowfall. Photo: Craig Whitehead/Unsplash

"Static electricity occurs from the interaction of one material that captures electrons and another that gives up electrons," Richard Kaner, senior author and professor. "You separate the charges and create electricity out of essentially nothing."

Snow is positively charged, while silicon is negatively charged. Thus, when the snow comes into contact with the silicon surface, the contact produces a charge that the device catches. The result: electricity.

It took some time for the researchers to settle on silicon as their material of choice, as there are other materials that could potentially work.

"While snow likes to give up electrons, the performance of the device depends on the efficiency of the other material at extracting these electrons," Maher El-Kady, co-author and assistant researcher at UCLA, says. He added that the team tested other materials such as aluminum foils and Teflon, but after all the tests, they found that silicon was able to produce more charge than the other materials.

Wintertime covers roughly 30 percent of the Earth in a blanket of snow, which means solar panels usually do not operate smoothly in these regions during this season. The new device from UCLA can be integrated into solar panels to provide an alternative power source during snowy days when not enough sunlight makes it to the solar array.

While the most impressive feature of the device is creating electricity, it also acts as a handy weather station that can tell users data on the amount and direction of snowfall as well as the direction and speed of the wind.

Athletes can also use the device to assess and monitor their performance in various winter sports. The snow TENG has the potential to recognize movement patterns when cross-country skiing, which is a feature not yet available in fitness wearables and smart watches. (Tasnim News Agency)

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE

Research reveals exotic quantum states in double-layer graphene

Research by scientists at Brown and Columbia Universities has demonstrated the existence of previously unknown states of matter that arise in double-layer stacks of graphene, a two-dimensional nanomaterial.

Antarctic detector offers first look at how Earth stops high-energy neutrinos in their tracks

An interdisciplinary team of researchers using the IceCube Neutrino Observatory in Antarctica has measured how certain high-energy neutrinos are absorbed by the Earth, as opposed to passing through matter as most neutrinos do. The finding could help expand scientists' understanding of the fundamental forces of the universe.

Daydreaming Is Good: It Means You're Smart

A new study from the Georgia Institute of Technology suggests that daydreaming during meetings isn't necessarily a bad thing. It might be a sign that you're really smart and creative.

Virus linked to food sensitivity

Researchers found that a seemingly innocuous virus can provoke immune responses to a dietary protein in mice. Patients with celiac disease showed high levels of antibodies to the virus. The results suggest that viruses may play a role in initiating immune responses against gluten.

Rapid melting of the world’s largest ice shelf linked to solar heat in the ocean

An international team of scientists has found part of the world’s largest ice shelf is melting 10 times faster than the overall ice shelf average due to solar heating of the surrounding ocean surface.

The Incredible Shrinking Mercury is Active After All

It’s small, it’s hot, and it’s shrinking. New NASA-funded research suggests that Mercury is contracting even today, joining Earth as a tectonically active planet.