Shankha Subhra Das, a Tripura-based engineer, developed a technology to power medical diagnostic kits and mobile phones by generating electrical power from a wet cloth. It is a device which relies on capillary action and water evaporation for generating power. He used a cloth cut to a particular size and inserted it in a plastic straw to fix in a half-filled water container, after which he attached copper electrodes to both ends of the straw.
“The water is transported to the top after some time, due to capillary action, and around 700 millivolts are registered in the voltmeter,” Das told Hindustan Times.
Das and his team connected a series of 30-40 such devices to increase power. According to Das, this generates 12 volts, enough to charge mobile phones, microchip, mini gadget, medical diagnostic kits and even light a small LED bulb.
The engineer was given the Gandhian Young Technological Innovation (GYTI) award earlier this month from Union Minister, Dr. Harsh Vardhan for this innovation.
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