Engineers at the University of California, San Diego, opened up a super-sparing appearance that was used to generate voltage. When salt fire flows through the appearance of this extraordinary pattern, it does not occur at least 50 millivolts. The point of view examines whether things are supposed to open up new power sources for the on-chip lab platform and the rest of the microfluidic equipment. The seminar staff revealed that it will one day expand to the energy network essentials of the sea fire desalination plant.

The research team led by Prab Bandaru, a professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at the University of California, San Diego, and the first author Bandaru's research group, Bei Fan, announced their findings on October 3rd. Research results. Natural communication .

The first thought of this matter is to move the ions on the charging surface to generate voltage . Bandaru shows that the faster the rate of moving these ions, the more voltage is generated.

Bandaru's team created a cloud-like appearance that allowed the fire (and any ions it cares for) to be fixed faster as it passed. The appearance is also connected to a negative charge, which is caused by the fact that the positive ions outside the salt fire are fixed relative to the negatively charged surface to cause a potential difference, thereby generating a voltage.

“The friction of this type of appearance and the subsequent electrical interactions help to obtain implicitly enhanced voltages,” Bandaru said.

The weak ridges are etched outside the silicon substrate and then the ridges are added with oil (for example for smooth decomposition of the oil) to create the appearance. Outside of the test, the dilute salt fire is transported on the outside by a syringe pump in a microfluidic channel and then through the voltage measured at both ends of the channel.

Previous reports of super-sparkling or so-called "floating leaves" have been made to speed up fluid fixation at the exterior. However, so far, these appearances have been patterned to have weak air pockets - and because the atmosphere can not be connected to the charge, the potential difference is small, and the voltage is small. Through the process of using liquids such as oil to replace the atmosphere - whether it is connected to the charge and not to be confused with salt fire - Bandaru and Fan created the appearance of the voltage generated by at least 50% than previously thought . According to Bandaru's method, it is possible to obtain a lower voltage by passing a faster liquid velocity and a narrower and longer channel.

Looking ahead, the team is actively building channels with these patterned appearances to generate more electricity.

Further exploration: the insulator becomes a conductor with the push of a button

For more information: B. Fan et al., Enhance Voltage Generation via Electrolyte Immobilization on the Surface of the Fluid, Nature Communications (2018). DOI: 10.1038 / s41467-018-06297-9