Researchers have leveraged the hydrovoltaic effect, using nanoscale devices to convert evaporation energy into electricity, advancing our understanding of how these devices function across different salinity levels, and opening up possibilities for renewable energy generation and waste-heat recovery. Credit: SciTechDaily.
Although hydrovoltaic devices currently exist, there is very little functional understanding of the conditions and physical phenomena that govern HV energy production at the nanoscale. It’s an information gap that Giulia Tagliabue, head of the Laboratory of Nanoscience for Energy Technology in the School of Engineering, and PhD student Tarique Anwar wanted to fill.
“Thanks to our novel, highly controlled platform, this is the first study that quantifies these hydrovoltaic phenomena by highlighting the significance of various interfacial interactions. But in the process, we also made a major finding: that hydrovoltaic devices can operate over a wide range of salinities, contradicting prior understanding that highly purified water was required for best performance,” says Tagliabue.