Researchers have developed a new device that uses a natural bacteria-derived protein to create electricity from moisture in the air, an advance that may help produce renewable energy that can work indoors unlike solar and wind-based generators.
The device, described in the journal Nature, is called "Air-gen", or air-powered generator, and is made using ultrasmall electrically conductive protein wires produced by the microbe Geobacter which was discovered in the mud of the Potomac River in the US more than 30 years ago.
According to the researchers from the University of Massachusetts (UMass) Amherst in the US, Air-gen connects electrodes to the tiny protein wires in such a way that it generates electrical current from water vapour naturally present in the atmosphere.
"We are literally making electricity out of thin air. The Air-gen generates clean energy 24/7," said Jun Yao, study co-author from UMass Amherst.
The device, the scientists said, is non-polluting, renewable and low-cost.
They added that it can generate power even in areas with extremely low humidity such as the Sahara Desert.
According to Derek Lovely, another co-author of the study from UMass Amherst, the device has significant advantages over other forms of renewable energy including solar and wind since "it even works indoors."