What if we could produce energy by something as mundane as the mere act of touching an object? Since most actions utilize some form of touching or pressing, we would be able to harness tons of energy, which could then be converted to electricity! This is where piezoelectricity comes in.
Piezoelectricity refers to the act of ”pressing or squeezing electricity.” It’s the concept that mechanical energy exerted on a group of “crystals” produces electricity. As the amount of pressure applied increases, there is a corresponding increase in the electric charge generated. Unlike the traditional definition ascribed to crystals, piezoelectricity is not limited to sparkly rocks but, rather, any solid whose atoms are arranged in orderly, repeating, uniform structures; these are coined as crystalline solids. Exerting electrical energy onto a crystal should hypothetically cause it to produce mechanical energy and deform itself.
Piezoelectricity is used in more situations than its outlandish name suggests. It is commonly used in devices that involve the production and reception of sound, high-voltage-producing appliances, and even motors, given that the crystals being pressed are manipulated accordingly. For example, in electronic lighters, a press of a button triggers a spring-loaded hammer which strikes a piezoelectric crystal, producing a relatively high voltage. This electrical energy is swiftly converted into heat energy, thus igniting the gas and producing a flame. Meanwhile, in certain situations, audio and sensor devices such as microphones and medical imaging equipment implement the piezoelectric effect, using extremely sensitive piezoelectric crystals to detect different pressure variations of sound. And when precision is required, as is the case for certain motors, the crystals utilized are tweaked ever so slightly to cater to the specific demands of the task at hand.
Last school year, four Grade 10 students, namely Grace Gaw, Adrienne Go, Trei Ngo, and Jorge Ong, aimed to find a functional use of piezoelectricity for their Principles of Research course by conducting research on the feasibility of piezoelectricity as a renewable source of power for MGC New Life Christian Academy (MGCNLCA). They analyzed previous experimentations and theories on piezoelectricity and studied its practicality as a source of electricity through piezoelectric floor tiles, finally concluding that it is not feasible. Simply put, piezoelectricity is not very efficient in producing electricity in this specific context. In fact, it only produces around 0.01 percent of the energy generated by a typical outlet. Furthermore, the cost of this project would be around 772,000 pesos, if carried out. After considering all these factors, they deemed that the school would make a profit in roughly four thousand years, and like the longevity of the method used to implement piezoelectricity, that being floor tiles, only has a lifespan of twenty years, expenses would only continue to increase.
However, this is mostly due to the fact that MGCNLCA is a relatively small school; consequently, it is not the ideal situation for the application of piezoelectricity in all its glory. In a situation where hundreds of people walk over the same tiles throughout the day, piezoelectricity could be harnessed to its full potential. However, these tiles wear out decently easily, so there will be constant expenses to replace the tiles if they are placed in far too populated areas.
Therefore, a place like High Street in BGC or one of the better-known universities in the Philippines would be preferable locations to install piezoelectric tiles, as much more people visit them than MGCNLCA, and the energy collected could be used for the benefit of the general public instead of just the small school community in MGCNLCA, bringing a higher level of exposure to this form of energy. All of this goes to show that it’s important to have a wide array of different options in any situation in order to find and apply the most beneficial and efficient alternative. Piezoelectricity is a fascinating subject matter with lots of untouched potential. As an environmentally-friendly form of producing electricity, it deserves to be studied more and used more widely.
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