Proposed Device Could Capture Unlimited Renewable Energy From Earth's Infared Emissions

Two devices have been proposed to turn the Earth's night-time infrared emissions into a source of power. At the moment the idea is a series of calculations rather than one prototype, let alone two, but the thought experiments alone were enough to win publication in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. A crucial component of one idea is work forgotten since the late 1960s.

A team at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences set out to take on the challenge of how to produce clean, renewable energy at night for regions dependent on solar power. Theoretically speaking it is possible to generate energy wherever there is a difference in temperature. This includes the heat radiated back to space at night in the infrared part of the spectrum.

"Sunlight has energy, so photovoltaics make sense; you're just collecting the energy. But it's not really that simple, and capturing energy from emitting infrared light is even less intuitive," says lead author Dr Steven J. Byrnes.

Source: HERE