Comments on: COULD SOUND POWER YOUR HOME?

By: kishore kumar

kishore kumar — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 04:20:30 +0000

this site is very exiting

By: Mekhong Kurt

Mekhong Kurt — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 00:43:22 +0000

On a light note, I live in Asia, where the idea of a “quiet conversation” is people shrieking at each other — simultaneously!

Heck, China and India could cut their oil use dramatically if they just harnessed the power of the people!

By: lolyearight

lolyearight — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 21:41:49 +0000

Unfortunately, for things like laptops the waste heat produced is harmful to the system and must be gotten rid of. Since *anything* you do to turn that heat into energy is going to slow down the rate of heat loss, you’d be going after mutually exclusive goals.

By: energ8t

energ8t — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 22:40:53 +0000

Yes, it is cool that energy can be converted (Everything is energy, vice versa). Sound is not an energy source, just a medium- a method of recycling as stated in comments. Recycling is only necessary if the system/product is wasting a lot of energy through heat/noise etc. It is far more productive to make systems/products more efficient. It is better to not allow the system to waste energy in the first place- i.e. LCD vs OLED display, LED vs CFL bulbs. You can also harness waste EM pollution (microwaves, radio, tv, etc.) and transform that into useable electricity. See: piezo electricity, thermoelectricy. Although this is interesting, if you want to see some interesting looks into energy sources,methods of transmission and uses, Google this:
Salt water into fire (Google Video)
Meyl Scalar Wave (Google Video)
acoustic levitation (Google Video)

By: Kin li-chung

Kin li-chung — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 18:46:29 +0000

you COULD hook this up to current solar heating cells and take advantage of the better? rate of electrical conversion of the piezoelectric generators as compared the the dismal performance of silicon based PV cells. like instead of putting it on your TV, the heat could be from excess heating from say your thermostat or your solar heater. Would make a more reliable source of energy than say, a TV.

By: Nick Simpson

Nick Simpson — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 10:23:10 +0000

In regard to this being a waste of time, the impression I get from this article is that it works on “waste” heat – so surely could provide a way of improving efficiencies. In which case it’s an entirely plausible piece of research…

By: Chris

Chris — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 17:39:18 +0000

This seems like it would blend very well with other technologies to produce a small device that can generate heat and/or power. There are already devices that generate both heat and electricity on a small scale (backpack-size) by burning natural gas inside a chamber lined with pv collectors. The suggested application for those devices is to provide power and heat to portable shelters. By adding this heat->sound->energy device, you could generate more electricity when less heat is needed to heat the structure.

I wonder if it there would be a noise pollution issue… It the sound audible to humans or animals? Does some of it leak? If you try to dampen the noise, does it reduce the efficiency of the device?

By: Jed

Jed — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 16:49:42 +0000

I took a class from this guy back in ‘99. It was called “Physics of Hi-Fi.” Essentially a way to sucker kids like me into taking physics. He’s a cool dude, and he mentioned this research. I’m glad to see that he’s getting somewhere with it.

By: Todd

Todd — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 16:35:37 +0000

Sounds like putting a Band-Aid on a stab wound. Solar, wind and hydro technologies already exist – why not work further on those technologies to make them more affordable and accessable to those who want or “need” them.
30-40 US dollars for a stove is still a huge amount for someone living at a subsistance level.
Example, teach this target market how to build their own windmills from materials within their local biosphere and you establish generational education, a skilled local labor force, and a more stable subsitance with less reliance on money.
Making ice from wood doesn’t seem like a profitable venture.

By: wanderindiana

wanderindiana — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 15:06:51 +0000

I was just reading an article from a week or so ago (follow the link on my name) about a wood-burning stove that generates electricity via sound waves – technology advanced in the UK for use in third world countries. They hope to have these stoves selling for $30-40 in a few years.

It’s encouraging to read that the technology is being developed independently in another location.

By: Free Thinker

Free Thinker — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 13:33:01 +0000

This is a fascinating find. I wonder if this could apply to EV batteries to extend the travel distances on a single charge. It might serve the toasty lithium-ion cells, well.

…and, yes, that did make for a catchy intro.