Renewable Energy from Living Plants to Power IoT Sensor for Remote Sensing

Abstract

Renewable energy which can be used to replace traditional energy sources from fossil fuel is in dire demand to protect the earth from the further negative effect of climate change resulting from mining or drilling of fossil fuel and its related pollution. There are various renewable energy sources available, however, there is none currently that does not compete for arable land in nature or land for food production to enable the installation of the renewable energy facility. Thus, in this research, it is proposed a novel type of electrical energy which can be harvested from living plants and coexist well with nature without competing for any arable lands and at the same time generate energy for human needs. Plants generate energy from photosynthesis, respiration, and intercellular activities, and this energy, although is minute, still can be harvested as a new potential energy source to power any ultra-low power sensor for remote sensing purposes. Thus, it is presented in this paper, a characterization of the specific setup condition to harvest optimum minimum 3V from living plants and a power management circuit that can further boost the energy to an optimum level to power a wireless IoT sensor for remote sensing purposes. It turns the living plant into a plant-based cell. As there is wide vegetation in forests, jungles, plantations, and agricultural lands on earth, the combination of this energy from the plants could be a promising source of new renewable energy to mankind as this vegetation can exist for both food and energy production while it does not compete for arable land for the installation of energy sources such as what happens in fossil fuel, solar or wind energy to create greener earth.