extracting power from plants?

[ResinRat2]

Believe it or not, there is a recent patent granted on just this type of device. (It is listed in the earth battery topic somewhere way back)  It is designed to recharge electric cars from any tree so as to not adding to the load on the grid if we go all electric cars. 
Bill   

This is great Bill, veerrrrryyy interresssting!!!!!

I'll look for the link. Thanks.

[Pirate88179]

@ Koen:

Below is copied and pasted from the earth battery post I made a while back.  (I had to search to look it up)

7 zinc nail array on the tree (-) jumped to a 12" zinc spike in the ground 12' away (-) to the carbon rod (+)

1.17 vdc

1.8 vac

2.6 mA

That is, I believe, the only time I got decent mA's from it.  Alone (tree to the earth) was like .5 mA.  I did not follow up on these experiments like placing the nail farther away from each other, wiring trees in series, (if even possible) etc.  I think it needs looking into.

Bill

[Koen1]

thanks Bill.
Someday soon I'll grab some nails and find a tree to play with.

...haven't found that patent you mentioned yet...

[Pirate88179]

@ Koen:

You can just use your meter probes at first to see.  Just stab into the tree with one, and into the earth with the other.  I said my tree is minus but maybe not all are...I have no idea.

I will search around a little to see if I can find the post on the battery topic about the patent.  If I can locate it, I will post here.

Bill

[Pirate88179]

Koen:

Below is a re-post of one made by Localjoe in the earth batteries topic that talks about this.  It lists the original source of the info.  At one time, I was able to find and read the application, but I have no idea how I was able to do that.  Anyway, a lot of information in the below quote:


"Source: KeelyNet / Jerry Decker email (12/21/05)

"Unlimited Electric Energy from the Environment?"






An alternative electric power generating system that draws energy from a seemingly unlikely yet abundant, eminently renewable and virtually free power source has been submitted for patenting by MagCap Engineering, LLC, Canton, Mass., in collaboration with Gordon W. Wadle, an inventor from Thomson, Ill. Wadle has invented a way to capture the energy generated by a living non- animal organism --- such as a tree.

Chris Lagadinos, president of MagCap, developed circuitry that converts this natural energy source into useable DC power capable of sustaining a continuous current to charge and maintain a battery at full charge.

"As unbelievable as it sounds, we've been able to demonstrate the feasibility of generating electricity in this manner," said Wadle.

"While the development is in its infancy, it has the potential to provide an unlimited supply of constant, clean energy without relying on fossil fuels, a power generating plant complex or an elaborate transmission network."

Wadle likened the invention to the discovery of electricity over 200 years ago when charged particles were harnessed to create an electric current. "Now we've learned that there is an immense, inexhaustible source of energy literally all around us that can be harnessed and converted into usable electric power," he said. Ultimately, it should prove to be more practical than solar energy or wind power, and certainly more affordable than fuel cells, he added.

Wadle said he got the original idea of harnessing a tree for electrical energy from studying lightening, more than 50 percent of which originates from the ground. This prompted him to develop the theories resulting in a method to access this power source.

Lagadinos then designed circuitry that filtered and amplified these energy emanations, creating a useable power source.

Basically, the existing system includes a metal rod embedded in the tree, a grounding rod driven into the ground, and the connecting circuitry, which filters and boosts the power output sufficient to charge a battery.

In its current experimental configuration, the demonstration system produces 2.1 volts, enough to continuously maintain a full charge in a nickel cadmium battery attached to an LED light. "Think of the environment as a battery, in this case," said Lagadinos, "with the tree as the positive pole and the grounding rod as the negative."

Lagadinos said the system could be enhanced enough to generate 12 volts and one amp of power, "a desirable power level that could be used to power just about anything," he said. It is enough power to charge batteries for any type of vehicle, including hybrids and electric cars, or to use with an AC converter to produce household power, he added. The LED industry is a prime example of a potential user of this power source.

While the basic concept of this invention -- using a tree to generate electric power -- seems too incredible to be true, Lagadinos said it can be demonstrated quite simply. "Simply drive an aluminum roofing nail through the bark and into the wood of a tree -- any tree -- approximately one half inch; drive a copper water pipe six or seven inches into the ground, then get a standard off-the-shelf digital volt meter and attach one probe to the pipe, the other to the nail and you'll get a reading of anywhere from 0.8 to 1.2 volts of DC power," he said.

"You can't do anything with it in that form because it is 'dirty' -- i.e. highly unstable and too weak to power anything," he added. In order to properly harness this potential energy source, MagCap devised two test circuits: one with three capacitors that were connected in parallel by means of a switch and charged to 0.7 volts each.

When fully charged they are switched to a series mode, multiplying the voltage to 2.1 volts and flashing an LED to show that sufficient power could be generated to produce a useable result. The second circuit included a filtering device to stabilize and "clean" the current so it could be used to charge and maintain a NiCad battery.

The battery then could be connected to the LED to keep the LED lit continuously. Wadle pointed out that there seems to be no limit to the amount of power that can be drawn from an individual tree, no matter how many "taps" are inserted -- each produces the same amount of energy, an average of 0.7 - 0.8 volts. Size of the tree also seems not to matter.

Interestingly, while conventional wisdom would seem to indicate that the tree draws much of its energy from photosynthesis via its leaves, the voltage output actually increases to 1.2-1.3 volts in the winter after the leaves have fallen."


Bill