Tag: technology

Floating device turns raindrops into electricity

A lightweight, floating system turns raindrops into renewable power using water itself as the key component.

ource:Science China PressSummary:A new floating droplet electricity generator is redefining how rain can be harvested as a clean power source by using water itself as both structural support and an electrode. This nature-integrated design dramatically reduces weight and cost compared to traditional solid-based generators while still producing high-voltage outputs from each falling drop. It remains stable in harsh natural conditions, scales to large functional devices, and has the potential to power sensors, off-grid electronics, and distributed energy systems on lakes and coastal waters.Share:

    

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Floating Device Turns Raindrops Into Electricity
A water-integrated generator can float on lakes or reservoirs and convert raindrop impacts into strong electrical pulses with minimal materials. Credit: Shutterstock

Raindrops are more than a source of fresh water. They also carry mechanical energy that reaches the ground for free, and scientists have been exploring how to turn that energy into electricity for years. Traditional droplet electricity generators, however, often struggle with low efficiency, heavy components, and limited potential for scaling up. A research team from Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics has now developed a new solution: a floating droplet electricity generator that uses natural water as part of its structure. The result is a lighter, more affordable, and more sustainable way to collect clean energy. The work is described in National Science Review.

Most droplet electricity generators use a solid platform and a metal bottom electrode. When a raindrop hits the dielectric film on top, the impact produces an electrical signal. Although this approach can generate hundreds of volts, it relies on rigid, costly materials that limit widespread deployment. The new design takes a different approach by allowing the device to float on a water surface. In this setup, the water itself acts as the supporting base and also serves as the conductive electrode. This nature-integrated configuration cuts the device’s weight by about 80 percent and lowers cost by about 50 percent while maintaining similar electrical output compared to conventional systems.

How Water Improves Energy Generation

When a raindrop lands on the floating dielectric film, the water beneath it provides the strength needed to absorb the impact because of its incompressibility and surface tension. This lets the droplet spread more effectively across the surface. At the same time, ions in the water act as charge carriers, allowing the water layer to operate as a dependable electrode. These combined effects enable the floating generator to deliver high peak voltages of around 250 volts per droplet, a performance level comparable to devices that rely on metal components and solid substrates.

Durability is a major advantage of the new system. Tests showed that the W-DEG continued to function under a wide range of temperatures and salt levels, and even when exposed to natural lake water containing biofouling. Many energy-harvesting devices degrade in such environments, but this generator remained stable because its dielectric layer is chemically inert and its water-based structure is naturally resilient. To improve reliability further, the team used water’s strong surface tension to design drainage holes that let water move downward but not upward. This creates a self-regulating way to remove excess droplets and helps prevent water buildup that could interfere with performance.

Scalable Design for Large-Area Energy Collection

Scalability is a promising aspect of this technology. The researchers created an integrated device measuring 0.3 square meters, which is much larger than most previous droplet generators, and demonstrated that it could power 50 light-emitting diodes (LEDs) at the same time. The system also charged capacitors to useful voltages within minutes, showing its potential for powering small electronics and wireless sensors. With continued development, similar systems could be deployed on lakes, reservoirs, or coastal waters, providing renewable electricity without using any land-based space.

“By letting water itself play both structural and electrical roles, we’ve unlocked a new strategy for droplet electricity generation that is lightweight, cost-effective, and scalable,” said Prof. Wanlin Guo, a corresponding author of the study. “This opens the door to land-free hydrovoltaic systems that can complement other renewable technologies like solar and wind.”

Broader Applications and Future Possibilities

The impact of this research goes beyond capturing energy from rainfall. Because the generator floats naturally on water, it could support environmental monitoring systems in diverse aquatic settings, including sensors for water quality, salinity, or pollution. In areas with frequent rain, the technology could offer a distributed source of clean power for local grids or act as a resource for off-grid needs. The “nature-integrated design” approach, which uses abundant natural materials like water as essential working components, may also inspire future advances in sustainable technology.

Although the laboratory results are encouraging, the researchers emphasize that additional work is necessary before the technology can be deployed at large scales. Real raindrops vary in both size and speed, and these differences could influence power generation. Maintaining the durability of large dielectric films in dynamic outdoor conditions will also require further engineering. Even so, the successful demonstration of a stable, efficient, and scalable prototype represents an important step toward practical applications.

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https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2025/11/251114041228.htm

ChatGPT ‘drinks’ a bottle of fresh water for every 20 to 50 questions we ask, study warns

By Rosie Frost

Published on 20/04/2023 – 13:13 GMT+2•Updated 21/04/2023 – 8:19 GMT+2

There is still very little research into the environmental impact of AI.

For every 20 to 50 questions ChatGPT is asked, it “drinks” a bottle of water according to new research.

OpenAI’s AI chatbot has soared in popularity thanks to its uncanny ability to accurately answer our questions. After being made available to the public for testing last November, it has been used for everything from poetry to coding and even answering exam questions meant for medical students.

But despite billions of users around the world, there’s still very little research on what environmental impact AI like this is having.

A new study from researchers at the University of Colorado Riverside and the University of Texas Arlington in the US gives some insight into its water consumption. The paper has not yet been peer-reviewed and has been shared ahead of its publication.

Its authors say that the “water footprint” of these AI models has so far “remained under the radar”.

How do AI chatbots use water?

The study’s water consumption figures refer to fresh clean water used by data centres to generate electricity and cool the racks of servers.

Most of the prominent chatbots’ cloud computing relies on thousands of servers inside data centres around the world. Computers are used to train algorithms known as ‘models’ to perform tasks like answering questions from users.

During a 20 to 50 question conversation with the AI chatbot, they estimate it could “drink” a 500ml bottle of water.

A bottle of water might not seem like much but ChatGPT has billions of users.

“While a 500ml bottle of water might not seem too much, the total combined water footprint for inference is still extremely large, considering ChatGPT’s billions of users,” the researchers say.

Scientists believe that while training GPT-3 alone, Microsoft may have consumed an incredible 700,000 litres of water.

More complex next-generation models like GPT-4 could consume even more during training, they say, but there is hardly any publicly available data with which to make an accurate estimate.

Companies need to ‘take responsibility and lead by example’

The study’s authors have urged companies to “take social responsibility and lead by example” to address their water footprint in the face of global shortages.

Earlier this year, a landmark report on water economics said that demand is expected to outstrip the supply of fresh water by 40 per cent by the end of this decade. The report from the Global Commission on the Economics of Water said that all industries need to overhaul their wasteful practices.

The study’s authors are also asking for more data transparency so that the environmental impact of these AI systems can be better assessed through research like this.

“AI models’ water footprint can no longer stay under the radar – water footprint must be addressed as a priority as part of collective efforts to combat global water challenges,” they conclude.

OpenAI didn’t immediately respond to Euronews’ request for comment and Microsoft declined to comment on the study.

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https://www.euronews.com/green/2023/04/20/chatgpt-drinks-a-bottle-of-fresh-water-for-every-20-to-50-questions-we-ask-study-warns