Clean energy will be an impossible dream until the politicians get real

摘要

Researchers who have developed a way of generating energy from water describe their discovery as a new source of electricity. Their breakthrough could, they believe, have far-reaching consequences for all kinds of industries. Generating electricity from flowing water is not a new idea, of course; hydro-electricity is one of the most widely used clean energy sources. But this is different. It's a source of energy that could power devices as small as mobile phones. Water―ordinary water―exhibits electrokinetic properties when it is pumped at pressure through tiny microchannels. Scientists at the University of Alberta have harnessed this phenomenon, creating a sustainable electrical charge by exploiting the separation that occurs at a solid/liquid interface. They claim to have generated electricity by forcing water through microchannels, millions of which could be yoked together, meaning that small electronic devices could be charged by running water.