A new smart window can generate electricity from rain while saving energy. When you think about generating your own electricity from renewable sources, the first thing that comes to mind is probably solar energy, which is now available in the form of easy-to-use balcony power stations or more solar systems. important things that are within everyone’s reach.
Wind power or Geothermal energy may also come to mind for some people in order to be as self-sufficient as possible, but how does generating electricity from rain work? The new window “Plus Energy” was developed at the University of Seoul and uses ITO (indium tin oxide) as a semiconductor.
Many applications such as photovoltaics, LEDs and display elements today require a transparent, high conductivity ITO electrode to operate. However, the South Korean research team uses a combination of multiple layers of ITO and silver. The ITO-silver combination generates electricity through the friction of raindrops on the electrode. The team presented their study entitled “Energy-saving window for versatile multimode of radiative cooling, energy harvesting, and defrosting functionalities”:
In an experiment simulating rainy conditions, the smart windows generated 8.3 W m-2 of energy with a single drop of rain.
This means that 8.3 watts of power is generated on an area of one square meter. This new technology is particularly interesting for hot days, which are expected to become more common in many parts of the world due to climate change. Unlike conventional windows with high solar absorption, the smart window has a cooling effect ( ).
As only the visible part of the sunlight spectrum is transmitted, the indoor temperature can be lowered by around 7 degrees when outdoor temperatures are high, reducing dependence on conventional cooling systems – and this, without additional energy consumption.
The final benefit of the window is its ability to defrost on freezing days with a transparent heating function, without requiring additional energy. You will find detailed information on the project in the study published on Nano Energy.
