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Power Walking

ALTERNATIVE ENERGY IS ALL AROUND US. WE’RE GETTING FUEL FROM CORN AND ENERGY FROM THE WIND. AND THERE’S A WHOLE NEW DEFINITION OF POWER WALKING, AS YOU’LL HEAR ON TODAY’S ENVIRONMINUTE.

EVERY TIME YOU TAKE A STEP, YOU CREATE A COUPLE OF WATTS OF ENERGY.  RESEARCHERS HAVE FIGURED OUT HOW TO HARVEST SOME OF THIS POWER.

STEVE ANTON, A RESEARCH ASSISTANT AT VIRGINIA TECH, SAYS IT’S CALLED PIEZOELECTRICITY.  WHEN CERTAIN MATERIALS ARE BENT OR COMPRESSED, THEY RELEASE ENERGY.

ANTON: AND BY PLACING ONE OF THESE PIEZOELECTRIC DEVICES IN A SHOE, PER SE, WHEN YOU STEP DOWN AND COMPRESS THE DEVICE, IT’LL CREATE ENERGY, ELECTRICAL ENERGY.

RIGHT NOW, SUCH DEVICES CAN COLLECT ONLY A FRACTION OF THE ENERGY PRODUCED. BUT, BY STORING POWER IN A BATTERY, ANTON SAYS WE’LL SOON BE ABLE TO POWER PORTABLE DEVICES SUCH AS CELL PHONES AND IPODS JUST BY WALKING.

THE ENVIRONMINUTE IS MADE POSSIBLE BY THE HEINZ FAMILY PHILANTHROPIES AND THE HEINZ ENDOWMENTS.  LEARN MORE BY VISITING ENVIRONMINUTE-DOT-COM. 

Read more from the Center for Intelligent Material Systems and Structures at Virginia Tech.

Read more about the history of piezoelectricity from Piezo Systems, Inc.