Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst announced the development of new technology for electricity generation. They have successfully developed the electricity from the air moisture with the help of natural proteins. Reportedly, this technology will offer new aspects to the future of renewable energy. Moreover, it will also aid in the development of future medicine industry.
“Air-Gen” To Empower the Future
Mass Amherst researchers Jun Yao and Derek Lovley named their recent invention as “Air-gen” or air-powered generator. They highlighted that the device holds electrically conductive protein nanowires created by the microbe Geobacter. While explaining the research, Yao stated, “We are literally creating electricity out of thin air. Air-gen produces clean energy 24/7.” According to Lovley, “It’s the most exciting and amazing application of protein nanowires up till now.” Lovley holds experience in creating sustainable biology-based electronic materials for over 30 years.
The latest technology is renewable, cost-effective, and non-polluting. Moreover, it is capable of producing energy in exceptionally low humidity regions including the Sahara Desert. According to Lovely, it offers additional benefits over other renewable energy types such as wind and solar. He added that the Air-gen works efficiently even in the absence of wind or sunlight. Furthermore, it can work indoors also. Scientists state that the current Air-gen device models can empower small electronics. Additionally, we can expect to see this invention available for commercial use soon.
As the next step in this research, the scientists are planning to create a small Air-gen “patch.” The main focus of this patch will be powering various electronic wearable devices including smartwatches in addition to fitness and health monitors. They believe that the introduction of this patch will shun the dependability on conventional batteries. In addition to this, the researchers also propose to develop Air-gens for cell phones. This will ditch the need for regular charging of these devices.
