Posts Tagged ‘energy’

Researchers at the Cornell University have taken inspiration from nature and tried to imitate the swaying of tree branches. So what is the difference between natural swaying of trees and energy-harvesting tree created by Cornell University researchers? The flapping leaves developed in the laboratory generate energy which can be used by us.

Just when we thought tree only provided shade in the heat of the sun and the little detail of providing oxygen, we now learn that tree actually produce electrical energy. While it is true that you are not going to be able to cancel the electrical companies service just yet, there is enough available to power a remote sensor.

Louis LeGrand has always loved the new drones (aka; uav) so one day he decided to build his own solar powered airplane. This thing aint gonna be droppin' anything as it's far too light but hay you have to start somewhere right?

Very nice build Louis! Thanks for sharing it.

(Via: Link )

Personally I hate doing laundry. That was part of the reason I got married;-) Anyway, you eco nuts out there will love this earth friendly solar powered washing machine developed by a French student. Kinda gives a whole new meaning to the phrase "sunshine fresh" don't it? DIY instructions and details at the link below.

( Via: Link )

Our favorite astronomer has updated his page today to include some new video showing how to create your very own wind turbine on the cheap using a treadmill motor and some homemade parts you may already have laying around the house or yard. For those of you that are very mechanically challenged so not worry, he includes step by step his directions for how he did it.

Here is a Perpetual Spy Gadget that you can easily make a home using off the shelf parts. Using a small solar panel you will be able to listen into conversations from over a mile away on any FM radio. The best part is that this will literally run forever (or until it is discovered) Here we show you in detail how its done.

Basically the idea is that a tower is constructed, and a large circle of the ground is covered with a material that sits 3-15 feet off the ground. Light can shine through the material, heating the air underneath the material and funneling it toward the only escape for the hot air, a tower at the center of the circle.

You have most likely heard of a potato battery, a lemon battery, an earth battery. Well here we present a plant battery powered LED light.

Back in the late 1800′s almost all of the telegraphs in the United States and Europe ran off “Earth Batteries” Here we take a fresh new look at the earth battery and how you can use this free energy to power your small electrical gadgets.

A mud battery is made with a zinc or graphite anode (the positive terminal), buried in mud, and a cathode (negative terminal) in the seawater, both connected by a copper wire. Here we take a look at how your backyard could supply you with energy to light your garden.

A Stirling engine is a heat engine that operates by cyclic compression and expansion of air or other gas, the working fluid, at different temperature levels such that there is a net conversion of heat energy to mechanical work.

Creating your own energy harvesting AA or AAA battery charger is not hard at all. Here I will show you how to do it using off the shelf parts, most of which you may already have.

Okay so I decided to mod the Solar Desktop clock by getting rid of the battery all together and using only a super cap.

Here is a neat little project idea. I recently picked up a cheap china made desktop weather, clock, humidity unit. I found that if I attached one cheap solar panel from a junk garden lamp this thing would stay running just from the lights in the room sitting on my desktop.

Making a solar heater type furnace is not that hard as you will see I built a small one last year that just works. These are NOT toys and can reach temps of up to 350 F