Can Sound Be Turned Into Useful Electricity?

Introduction

Did you know that the sounds all around us contain hidden energy just waiting to be captured? These waves, produced by sound, are being studied and researched to its fullest extent to have a sustainable and renewable energy source for the future. The energy that is found in sound waves could help turn simple sounds into functional electricity! This article will explore the ways researchers are using sound waves and their energy to be able to be converted into electricity.

Piezoelectricity

One method uses a material's hidden talent for generating energy from vibrations, also known as piezoelectricity, or for short, PZT. Some materials can generate an electric charge when exposed to a vibration or pressure, to important elements in sound waves. Materials like these could further help make sound waves into direct electricity for our devices to use for power. Lead zirconate titanate (PZT) is a commonly used piezoelectric material. Using strips of PZT can be useful by using light or ambient sound waves to power a device. This method is still currently being experimented with, but by using nanogenerators there is a possibility to find energy from low-frequency sounds.

Electromagnetic Induction  

Imagine if the simple sounds all around you could power devices by inducing flowing currents just like rushing rivers power hydroelectric dams. This could be a possible solution for researchers to create electricity with sound waves. Sound waves are pressure variations that can move a magnetic coil within a magnetic field which is similar to the basic mechanics of how a hydroelectric dam works.

 While still a particularly new topic, prototypes are using a floating membrane that uses vibrations to respond to sounds. The component vibrates through a magnetic field to induce current flow. There are still many challenges that are presented with this medium of sound wave conversion, and there are still many difficulties that remain in trying to quickly capture sound waves and convert ambient sounds into electricity this way.

Acoustic Cavities

Acoustic cavities are another possible way of converting sound waves. Borrowing some knowledge from biology and implementing them into another field of science could theoretically work as it uses a mechanism similar to those in our ears. As sound waves enter through our ear canal so that we can hear; we can use models of tubes to create electricity through transporting fuel for electricity (e.g water and air). Sound waves cause pressure differences when in resonant tubes. The pressure difference is being used to make fluid or gas flow to be able to be made into electricity. The early prototypes that are being developed use air or water, depending on the method in which the electricity is made, and are moved through the cavity by the use of sound. The main problem with this type of conversion is the way that is used to extract usable power from sound sources.

Biomimicry

The final method that is being explored is the use of insects, though it has some ethical issues, insects have specialised organs that can convert sound vibrations into neural signals that can be extracted for energy. Researchers are studying the mechanics of this organ so that instead of using it directly from the insect, they could rather use similar or inspired designs and structures to mimic the designs. Using this method and PZT could potentially result in mimicking the structure of the insect auditory system to make a sustainable way to produce electricity. 

Conclusion

In conclusion, while the topic of using sound waves to power devices is new and multiple studies are still experimenting, it is more likely that we have a renewable and clean energy source from sound waves. There are many different methods for converting them into electricity like electromagnetic induction, biomimicry and acoustic cavities, the most likely or most promising research is using piezoelectricity, a method composed of using materials that could make low-frequency sounds into electricity. Future applications of these methods will result in a clean and renewable energy source for the generation after us, and the thousands of scientists who conducted studies after studies create a promising future for the later years.