{"177621":{"#nid":"177621","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Georgia Tech Power Cell Among Top 10 Physical Science Breakthroughs in 2012","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EA power cell that directly converts mechanical energy to chemical energy \u2013 which can then be stored and converted to electrical energy \u2013 has been selected as one of 2012\u2019s top breakthroughs in the physical sciences by \u003Cem\u003EPhysics World\u003C\/em\u003E magazine.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe cell, developed at the Georgia Institute of Technology by Professor Zhong Lin Wang and his research team, was first reported in the journal \u003Cem\u003ENano Letters\u003C\/em\u003E on August 9, 2012. By eliminating the need to convert mechanical energy to electrical energy for charging a battery, the new hybrid generator-storage cell utilizes mechanical energy more efficiently than systems using separate generators and batteries.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAt the heart of the self-charging power cell is a piezoelectric membrane that drives lithium ions from one side of the cell to the other when the membrane is deformed by mechanical stress. The lithium ions driven through the polarized membrane by the piezoelectric potential are directly stored as chemical energy using an electrochemical process.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBy harnessing a compressive force, such as a shoe heel hitting the pavement from a person walking, the power cell generates enough current to power a small calculator. A hybrid power cell the size of a conventional coin battery could power small electronic devices \u2013 and could have military applications for soldiers who might one day recharge battery-powered equipment as they walked, said Wang, who is a Regents Professor in the School of Materials Science and Engineering.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe \u003Cem\u003EPhysics World\u003C\/em\u003E team selected the project from more than 350 news articles about advances in the physical sciences published on physicsworld.com in 2012. The criteria for judging included:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cul\u003E\u003Cli\u003EFundamental importance of research\u003C\/li\u003E\u003Cli\u003ESignificant advance in knowledge\u003C\/li\u003E\u003Cli\u003EStrong connection between theory and experiment\u003C\/li\u003E\u003Cli\u003EGeneral interest to all physicists\u003C\/li\u003E\u003C\/ul\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe full list of advances can be seen \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/physicsworld.com\/cws\/article\/news\/2012\/dec\/14\/physics-world-reveals-its-top-10-breakthroughs-for-2012\u0022\u003Ehere\u003C\/a\u003E. original Physics World article on the power cell can be read \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/physicsworld.com\/cws\/article\/news\/2012\/aug\/27\/power-cell-generates-and-stores-energy-in-one-step\u0022\u003Ehere\u003C\/a\u003E.\u0026nbsp; \u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EA power cell that directly converts mechanical energy to chemical energy \u2013 which can then be stored and converted to electrical energy \u2013 has been selected as one of 2012\u2019s top breakthroughs in the physical sciences by Physics World magazine.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"A Georgia Tech power cell has been named one of the top physical science breakthroughs of 2012."}],"uid":"27303","created_gmt":"2012-12-14 09:55:51","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:13:22","author":"John Toon","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2012-12-14T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2012-12-14T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"groups":[{"id":"1317","name":"News Briefs"}],"categories":[{"id":"144","name":"Energy"},{"id":"145","name":"Engineering"},{"id":"149","name":"Nanotechnology and Nanoscience"}],"keywords":[{"id":"107","name":"Nanotechnology"},{"id":"960","name":"physics"},{"id":"41271","name":"power cell"},{"id":"167735","name":"School of Materials Science \u0026 Engineering"},{"id":"13751","name":"Zhong Lin Wang"}],"core_research_areas":[{"id":"39451","name":"Electronics and Nanotechnology"},{"id":"39531","name":"Energy and Sustainable Infrastructure"}],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EJohn Toon\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EResearch News\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E(404) 894-6986\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:jtoon@gatech.edu\u0022\u003Ejtoon@gatech.edu\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["jtoon@gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}