With rising fuel costs, increasingly polluted air, and depleting natural resources, scientists are researching more ways to conserve and find energy resources. Here are a few of the interesting and unusual possibilities that have been investigated during the summer:
1) Diamonds: A durable, stable, shiny, and coveted symbol of glamour and status for centuries, diamonds are now being studied as a potential source of solar energy. Diamonds are allotropes of carbon, possessing large networks of covalent bonds that hold carbon atoms together in sturdy lattice structures. Their sturdiness has allowed diamonds to be used in drilling for decades. Diamonds also emit electrons when they are heated, since the exterior arrangement of their structures have easily excitable, single-electron hydrogen atoms around them. They are unique in their ability to do so at temperatures far lower than most electron-emitting substances.
Recently, researchers at the University of Bristol have devised a method to capture these emitted electrons via solar panels. By using these panels to target sunlight rays at diamond particles, it will be possible to capture these electrons right after emission. They will then pass through a vacuum and be sent out through electrical circuits, thus providing a solar-supplied way to extend electricity resources. The first working device for such a means to generate electricity through the diamonds’ electrons will be completed this October.
2) Smart phones: Though avid consumers of battery life and possible sources of radiation, smart phones are now being viewed as devices that could potentially conserve fuel emissions from traveling vehicles. This July, a team of researchers from M.I.T. and Princeton University were awarded for devising a system called SignalGuru, in which a network of smart phones images will warn drivers to stop for traffic lights well in advance before they reach the lights. Though this may not seem like it will drastically change a car’s fuel consumption, having preceding knowledge of upcoming traffic lights would allow drivers to avoid sudden braking and acceleration. This could lead up to a 20% reduction in fuel consumption by cars alone, according to the device’s creators. If it is adopted, SignalGuru will allow smart phones to be simultaneously used as GPS navigating systems and image capture devices that will warn drivers about stop lights based on the car’s location. It will also provide other perks for drivers on the go, by capturing images of gas station prices that they pass by and suggesting detours for routes containing frequent traffic lights and heavy road traffic.
3) Spin Bikes: For those of you who grew up playing the original Mario Party in the 1990s, you may recall playing a game where you spun your joystick as quickly as possible while your character pedaled on a spin bike to power up a light bulb and scare that vile Boo away. As of this July, a real alternative to this game has been gaining increasing publicity. In over 75 gyms throughout the United States, including a New York Sports Club location in Chelsea, spin classes are being offered where gym members can simultaneously exercise on their spin bikes and generate electricity. These stationary bicycles’ generators are connected to long cables that lead on to the same electric panels where the regular electricity supply is generated throughout the gym’s facilities. Though these stationary bikes, called Star Trek Spinner NXTs, are energy-efficient, most sports clubs are deterred by the fact that these bicycles cost about $100 more than regular spin bikes do. Nevertheless, the bikes are now being introduced to European gyms this year. It is believed by the International Health, Racquet and Sportsclub Association that the number of gym facilities that will install such spin bikes will “rapidly grow” by 2012. Who knows…maybe one day the gym will become the place New Yorkers go where they can finally “go green.”
