MXene-coated wool produces electricity from the flow and evaporation of sweat

A new power generator could let people charge fitness trackers and smartwatches with their own perspiration (Device 2024, DOI: 10.1016/j.device.2024.100356). The thin, flexible generator, which could be easily embedded in a wristband or headband, harnesses energy from evaporating sweat and produces electricity. The device is a type of hydroelectric nanogenerator (HENG). “Its working mechanism is pretty fascinating,” says Jingliang Li, a chemical engineer at Deakin University. HENGs have porous substrates loaded with functional materials that absorb water and split it into positive and negative ions, which line up along the substrate’s channels. As some water evaporates, capillary force drives more water past the charged channel walls, creating a movement of charges that generates an electric current. ....