Imagine a forest that could power its own network of sensors to monitor ecosystem health. Well, this idea is fast turning from sci-fi into reality as more scientits explore how to harvest the metabolic energy from non-animal organisms such as trees.
The latest research by Andreas Mershin’s team at MIT shows that using electrodes made of the same metal gives a current, the electricity comes from a difference in pH between the tree and the soil, a chemical imbalance that is created by the tree’s metabolic processes!
While we are a long way off from powering a light bulb, this is surely an glimpse of a green energy future.
Full article: Newscientist.com
More info: Voltreepower.com
Cover photograph by: Chad Stetson