Researchers from the Institute of Materials Science of Madrid (ICMM-CSIC), dependent on the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities, participated in an international team that developed a method capable of increasing renewable electricity generated from algae.
Concretely, the scientists managed to increase the electricity produced with alginate, a biodegradable polysaccharide from algae, by combining it with MXenes, conductive materials based on titanium and carbon or nitrogen, which have properties similar to those of graphene.
As explained in an article published in the journal ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, this methodology will allow you to charge small devices (such as thermometers, light bulbs or telemedicine devices) and generate energy autonomously.
The researchers clarified that, although this is not the first time that electricity has been obtained using this biopolymer, their objective was based on increasing the triboelectric properties of alginate at generate renewable energy using nanogenerators.
Bernd Wicklein, a researcher at ICMM-CSIC and one of the authors of this study, indicated that the triboelectric effect occurs when two surfaces come into contact during a movement and, “spontaneously”, the electrons jump from one to the other. When they separate, the charge of the electrons between them is decompensated and the electricity they collect is produced.
The researcher pointed out that the energy generated by this system is 300 milliwatts per square meter, which “cannot compete with a solar panel”, but it is ideal for generating energy autonomously in smaller elements.
“We created synergistic effects that increased the energy-creating capacity of alginate,” Wicklein summarized.
Easy, economical and ecological
MXenes, the key to this methodology, are highly conductive materials with an atomic thickness similar to graphene discovered in 2011 by Yury Gogotsi, also a signatory of this work. The big difference, according to the scientists, is is that they are hydrophilicThey can therefore be dispersed and processed in water, which gives them certain advantages over graphene.
In this sense, Wicklein said that the processing of this material is “more respectful” of the environment because it uses water and “does not require potentially toxic organic elements.” “(The process) is very simple, economical and ecological because everything is water-based,” he insisted.
The authors pointed out that the formula created is “perfectly scalable”, since, on the one hand, there are companies that produce MXenes “by the kilo” and, on the other hand, alginate, the basic polymer, “has no limitations.”
Thus, they expressed their hope that this research leaves the laboratory and reaches society. “We give ideas that others can also implement,” they said.
