Forget PV panels – Now there’s “POWER FELT”

http://www.gizmag.com/power-felt-thermoelectric-material/21572/

Power Felt (or any thermoelectric device), generates electricity from the transmission of heat from one side to the other.

So you might want Power Felt in a shirt or pants you wear while hiking and generating excess heat anyway; you won’t want Power Felt in a sleeping bag or jacket you wear to stay warm.

That’s why the Recharge Sleeping Bag using Power Felt from this thread would be a bad idea:

— Rex

Goldurn Rex, how's I miss that neato thread?

Hydrogen energy cells, motion-activat4ed chargers, PV solar cells, fans AND Power Felt. You pretty much covered the topic.

But Power Felt does look like the most feasible and lightest charging alternative, not to mention most easily integrated into clothing and equipment. But it also will likely be 'spensive until researchers can discover how to greatly lower the price by inexpensive mass production. Nanotechnology strikes again.

It has often been said that breakthroughs in battery technology are desperately needed. But right along with better batteries better charging devices are also desperately needed.

I imagine the U.S. military is extremely interested in Power Felt tech. At one high mountain outpost in Afghanistan Marines used about ten square yards of solar panels to recharge batteries so they would not need so much battery resupply. That re-supply had to come along an ambush-prone mountain road. Less re-supply meant fewer ambushes.

TANSTAAFL

Cheers

Power felt smart water bottle cozy? Cool water on one side, warm air/sun (presuming 3season hiking) on the outside. Or maybe one that lines the back of a back pack with a water bladder on the other side against the back? Wouldn't be as good an idea for a pot cozy, as it would make food cool down quicker, unless you were brewing tea/coffee and didn't mind it getting cold. Oh! This would be good for a melted snow cozy tho, would help the water get down to drinking temp quicker, and help charge some stuff. (don't know how much energy this stuff would grab for such sporadic uses tho.)

Thermoelectric generators work by resisting flow of heat energy from the hot side to the cold side, so the felt would have some insulating qualities – just not as much as a proper insulator. If you apply an electric current to a TEG you can drive the heat flow backwards, making a solid state heat pump. The 12V cooler/heaters sold for vehicles work this way. So a combination of the felt and PV panels could give you a solar refrigerator.

Yes, but is it water proof and breathable?

billy

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About 10 sq. inches on a T shirt powers an I pod Nano.

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No mention of the temperature differential, or which Ipod Nano, but if it's the latest, that's about 0.01W, definitely not enough to run a smartphone, never mind charge one.

Dave

I am thinking a crusher, cowboy hat or nice fedora. Cool your head while charging your tablet.