By Keith Landry
ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35 ORLANDO) – A simple video shows what could become a huge change in how we send and store electricity through wires. The video illustrates research being done at the University of Central Florida’s NanoScience Technology Center.
Professor Jayan Thomas has been working on nanotechnology for seven years. For the last year, he has led a team of students working to create cables that can actually store energy.
He says, “We can change the world. That is what we are looking forward to.”
We all know copper wiring is great for sending electricity from point A to point B. Thomas has added an outer layer of technology-tiny or nano copper oxide whiskers that can store energy for later use.
He explains, “As you enhance the surface area, it can store a lot of energy. So we converted the surface of, outside surface of that copper wire into an energy storing device.”
The video shows Thomas’ device is not hooked up to a power source. It is powering the light from stored energy. Thomas’ team believes you could build a solar cell and his wiring right into clothing. You’d be able to store enough energy to power your smart phone or MP3 device.
Years from now, the technology could power electric cars and store energy for your home collected from solar panels.
Professor Thomas’ work with energy storing electrical cables is getting a lot of attention here in the United States and in Europe. His work is featured in the current edition of Nature Magazine and the American Institute of Physics will visit him later this week.