LONDON /BUSINESS WIRE/ -- Technological developments in the fields of low-power electronics and energy storage systems have allowed energy harvesting—also referred to as energy scavenging and power harvesting—to become an increasingly viable technology in recent years. According to a new report available on companiesandmarkets.com, it is expected that the market for harvesting ambient energy will be worth more than $4 billion globally by 2021.
"Energy Harvesting and Storage for Electronic Devices 2011-2021"
Now that the advanced technologies associated with energy harvesting and storage devices have attained workable levels of efficiency and seen significant cost reductions, many more applications are surfacing. Existing energy harvesting and storage applications include vibration-based wireless oil field monitoring systems, windup laptops for use in remote regions, and wireless light switches.
It is widely believed that we will eventually see wireless sensors that are self powering and can be used to alert and monitor a range of environments and incidents, for example, pollution and forest fires, although considerable R&D is required to realize this type of application.
Examples of energy harvesting technologies include electrodynamics, photovoltaics, piezoelectrics, and thermovoltaics.
The energy harvesting and energy storage research report splits the market into the following:
- Light harvesting for small devices
- Movement harvesting
- Heat harvesting
- Other harvesting options, for example, electromagnetic field harnessing, microbial and other fuel cells, and multiple energy harvesting
Over 200 companies are profiled within the energy harvesting and storage research report, including Ambient Research, Arveni, Boeing, Cymtox Ltd, Ferro Solutions Inc., General Electric Company, IntAct, KCF Technologies Inc, Northrop Grumman, Omron Corp., Polatis Photonics, Rockwell Scientific, SELEX Galileo, Syngenta Sensors UIC, and Trophos Energy.
The 403 page, April 2011, energy harvesting storage market research report undertakes a thorough examination of the market, across 22 countries, for the period 2010-2021, assisting the reader in determining the technologies that offer the best opportunities both now and in the future, and the pros/cons of each type.