People are trying their luck with the way they treat the environment today and it seems that we already feel what it looks like to push nature to its limits. The resources necessary for normal and healthy living are being reduced throughout the world. Because of that, people are looking for alternative ways to make their living as nature-friendly as possible. In addition to the already green sources of energy, now you can also use plants to charge your mobile phone batteries.
Old concept in new context
This concept is older than the alternating current. The first pot power plant was designed in the 1830s. The mastermind behind this ingenious idea was Alexander Bain and the old concept of the earth battery. This inventor managed to generate electric power from zinc and copper. They were dug into the ground and connected with a wire. As the soil was wet, the reaction between those two metals created electrolyte-like solutions that conducted electricity. What happened here was that the electrodes simply performed an exchange of electrons, which is the base of every electric circuit.
Plug and charge
Every plant emits energy during photosynthesis, which is why scientists have realized that a surplus of energy generated this way can be used in a productive way. By installing an USB charger into a plant pot, you can use the energy contained in this little patch of soil to charge your mobile device, your tablet or any other similar gadget. That way you can save money on electricity bills, as well as make an additional use of your plants.
An average time for a plant to charge a smartphone battery is about an hour and a half. In addition, it can be used not only for charging your gadgets, but also for providing power for your lamps of other similar things.
How does it work?
The greatest advantage of the electric power obtained from plants is that we do not expose those plants to anything that they do not usually do. During the process of photosynthesis, the plant uses the light energy from the Sun to get chemical energy. When sunlight hits certain parts of the plant – the chloroplasts – it splits the water inside plants into oxygen, electrons and protons. While oxygen is emitted into the air and helps people and animals to survive, the other two features can behave like any other electrodes that form a circuit. What scientists do here is simply use the already existent biocircuit to get power for our devices.
Key steps
Before we switch to explaining user’s manuals, potential users of charging pots should know that they can choose from a variety of different plants. Now that you know that you are not restricted to only one plant, let’s move on with some further clarifications. First of all, when you get a plant charging device, it is important to know how to use it. When you want to plant-charge your mobile for the first time, take the USB drive out of the pot and pour some water into the pot.
Secondly, shake the pot, so that water drops become active energy-producing agents. When the water is activated, the organic process can start and it will yield some byproducts in the form of electrons. After that, you should put the USB-charger back and charge your battery. Also, whatever you do, always follow the manufacturer’s instructions. It is a guarantee that you will harm neither the plant nor your phone.
Practical office benefits
This all sounds great, but suspicious people might ask how practical these ecological solutions really are for their everyday office life. The clear answer is that they can be very helpful and handy. It has been proven that enriching offices with different plants can improve work productivity and employees’ health. Now those same plants that you already have inside your business premises can be used as phone chargers. On one side, you will reduce your electricity bills. This can be extremely important for asset-saving startup owners. On the other side, you will apply a green solution, which will reduce the carbon footprint of your business.
The potentials of the earth battery or the plant charger are simply huge. In the light of some reasonable predictions that the future could bring some dark concerning energy resources, everybody should start contributing to the preservation of nature as we speak; and plant chargers are a great way to start doing it.
