Listening to Learn: Hydroelectric Cell: The Biggest Invention in Green Energy
Channel: NCERT OFFICIAL
Date: 2022-12-09

#Listening to Learn
#Hydroelectric Cell: The Biggest Invention in Green Energy
#pmevidya

Email:- dth.class9@ciet.nic.in
                             to
            dth.class12@ciet.nic.in

Rapid changes in modern industry and deforestation have impacted our environment and this need to be addressed immediately. A Hydroelectric Cell, a recent revolutionary invention represents the most versatile green energy solution ever invented and fits well into the Circular Economy. This new electrical energy device is based on a nano-porous and oxygen-deficient magnesium ferrite/SnO2/TiO2 pellet which splits water molecules into ions spontaneously at room temperature to generate green electricity. A one-inch square cell develops a maximum voltage of 0.98 V and a short circuit current of 150 mA. Results are highly comparable to solar cells and other portable electrical energy sources that too without the use of any electrolyte except water! Hydroelectric Cell operates at room temperature, it does not produce greenhouse gases. It has been fabricated using low-cost precursors cheaper than fuel cells and solar cells. It is to be recalled that presently, among green energy sources solar and fuel cell technologies are growing fast but these are expensive and involve tedious manufacturing processes. It has got a very high potential to establish itself as a robust candidate for commercialization. Hydroelectric Cells can be used in a wide range of portable, stationary, and transport applications, from battery chargers to low-power devices inclusive of rural villages’ immediate need for their electricity in decentralized mode. Its usage would thus significantly reduce urban pollution. It is also a clean energy high purity hydrogen production device without generating any E-Waste! Moreover, Hydroelectric Cell does not emit carbon dioxide and any other toxic gases or by-products.  It is therefore a key player to achieve net carbon zero.

In this address, broadly covered topics are: Energy and Environment, History of Battery Evolution, Brief Introduction to some of the important Energy Sources, Rising Environmental concerns due to Batteries/Power sources, Introduction to the Revolutionary Invention of Hydroelectric Cell as a Green Energy Device which will be a Game Changer in Today’s Scenario, Comparison of Hydroelectric Cell with other Battery Technologies, Hydroelectric cell as a Clean and Green Hydrogen producer for achieving the Goal of Net Carbon Zero. 
 
 

Dr. R K Kotnala, Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences of India and Former Chairman of the National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL), Outstanding Academician, Asia Pacific Academy of Materials and is presently Advisor on magnetic measurements on Indian Neutrino Observatory (INO) as Raja Ramanna Fellow. He has worked as a scientist for 35 Years and held positions as Chief Scientist & Divisional Head of Environmental Sciences & Biomedical Metrology and Materials Engineering & Physics in the National Physical Laboratory. 
As chairman of the National Accreditation Board of T & C Labs, Dr. Kotnala was responsible for the Quality Infrastructure of the Labs & industries in India.  He obtained Ph.D., in Solar cells from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi.  He has been mainly instrumental in developing laboratories in the areas of green energy, magnetic primary standard & spintronic materials, Environmental Sciences, the Nanoscience field, and a hydroelectric cell in several universities.
Prof. Kotnala has been an Associate Editor of the Journal of Applied Physics, USA, and the Institution of Engineering Technologies, UK.
Prof. Kotnala has authored more than 540 research papers having more than 11,600 citations in peer-reviewed journals of international repute. He also has fifteen US and Indian patents and a similar number of industrial consultancies. He has published four books and has contributed eight 8 chapters. He is/has been the Chairman and member of the Boards Council, Governing bodies, UGC Nominee in various universities, academic councils, etc. 
Dr. Kotnala is a recipient of the prestigious Renewable Energy India 2018 Award by the UBM, a leading global company. He has also won the MRSI Medal Award of the Materials Research Society of India in 2008.  Dr. Kotnala has also been the JSPS Japan visiting Scientist in 1989.  He is currently the Vice President of the Magnetic Society of India, President of the Society of the Scientific Values (SVS), New Delhi, and the Society for Environment Awareness and Protection (SEAP).  Besides these awards, Dr. Kotnala’s scientific contributions have also been recognized and honoured by the Sigma Scientific Society, and also by the Office of the Naval Research, USA.