Periodic Reporting for period 2 - Plant-e (Plant-powered energy harvesting system for IoT solutions)
Reporting period: 2023-02-01 to 2024-09-30
Plant-e generates electricity with living plants to power IoT devices. A sensor and transmission of the data are powered by living plants growing around the device rather than by batteries. Plants excrete organic matter in the soil, where bacteria break down the organic matter. Bacteria release electrons in that process. By applying two carbon electrodes to the soil, Plant-e harvests the electrons and uses them as electricity. The electricity produced is sufficient for powering smart lights and, following this project, several IoT applications. Our harvesting solution can be deployed in any environment like agricultural land, wetlands, or tropical forests.
This way the use of unsustainable batteries is avoided, reducing the amount of waste that is produced. With over 12 billion IoT devices in use worldwide and an expected growth of the market of 10x in the next 10 years, avoiding batteries would avoid the accumulation of 66 milion tons of chemical battery waste. In turn the device is powered by living plants through unique and sustainable technology. By making use of natural processes around the plant-roots, electricity can be generated while the plant keeps growing. This leads to the only known carbon-negative energy technology in the world.
Plant-e delivers plant-powered lighting and remote sensing. The power-source uses power generated by living plants, thus delivering a very long lifetime of the power-source and the product as such.
Plant-e has developed three types of products based on the same vertical implementation of their core technology, leading to a general platform stick that can be deployed in any type of soil for powering lights or remote sensors. During the project the power-source was improved and both lighting and IoT remote sensing devices were further developed into standardized products.
Plant-e’s lighting stick is now marketed as “Nature Inclusive Lighting”; a product that fits smart cities around the world for low-lumen lighting meant for social safety. These lights derive their power from nature and don’t interfere with biodiversity, which leads to them being truly nature-inclusive.
Plant-e’s remote sensing products focus at water management for urban green through soil moisture monitoring and water level and temperature monitoring for remote wetlands. While the sensor is fully integrated with the power-source, the system is extremely robust and durable, leading to a maintenance-free system that fits remote locations perfectly. Moreover, the full integration with a satellite connection enables us to send data from all over the world, even when a local network is not available.
This way the use of unsustainable batteries is avoided, reducing the amount of waste that is produced. With over 12 billion IoT devices in use worldwide and an expected growth of the market of 10x in the next 10 years, avoiding batteries would avoid the accumulation of 66 milion tons of chemical battery waste. In turn the device is powered by living plants through unique and sustainable technology. By making use of natural processes around the plant-roots, electricity can be generated while the plant keeps growing. This leads to the only known carbon-negative energy technology in the world.
Plant-e delivers plant-powered lighting and remote sensing. The power-source uses power generated by living plants, thus delivering a very long lifetime of the power-source and the product as such.
Plant-e has developed three types of products based on the same vertical implementation of their core technology, leading to a general platform stick that can be deployed in any type of soil for powering lights or remote sensors. During the project the power-source was improved and both lighting and IoT remote sensing devices were further developed into standardized products.
Plant-e’s lighting stick is now marketed as “Nature Inclusive Lighting”; a product that fits smart cities around the world for low-lumen lighting meant for social safety. These lights derive their power from nature and don’t interfere with biodiversity, which leads to them being truly nature-inclusive.
Plant-e’s remote sensing products focus at water management for urban green through soil moisture monitoring and water level and temperature monitoring for remote wetlands. While the sensor is fully integrated with the power-source, the system is extremely robust and durable, leading to a maintenance-free system that fits remote locations perfectly. Moreover, the full integration with a satellite connection enables us to send data from all over the world, even when a local network is not available.
During the first year of the project we focused our work on improving the Plant-e system. Our power source is a Plant-Microbial Fuel Cell (P-MFC). We improved this P-MFC through better connections between the different parts of the system, reduction of materials and use of more sustainable materials. Furthermore, we went from horizontal installation in the ground to vertical installation, which led to a more stable power output throughout the year and less temperature dependence.
During the second year of the product we focused on validating the products from the first year in real-life pilots around the world as well as developing the market and pricing strategy for these products.
Validation in a remote peatland in Indonesia led to an improved version of the water-level sensing product of which the first 100 pieces have been assembled. Meanwhile the sales funnel for these 100 pieces was filled and first commercial projects are ready to start.
The lighting system had as its biggest limitation that it could only be deployed in wetlands, whereas such situations were not always present. Therefore, we developed a water-reservoir that provides the perfect conditions to the lighting stick to start-up and be fully operational, while it’s still open to the environment, enabling organic matter from the surroundings to enter the system at all times.
During the second year of the product we focused on validating the products from the first year in real-life pilots around the world as well as developing the market and pricing strategy for these products.
Validation in a remote peatland in Indonesia led to an improved version of the water-level sensing product of which the first 100 pieces have been assembled. Meanwhile the sales funnel for these 100 pieces was filled and first commercial projects are ready to start.
The lighting system had as its biggest limitation that it could only be deployed in wetlands, whereas such situations were not always present. Therefore, we developed a water-reservoir that provides the perfect conditions to the lighting stick to start-up and be fully operational, while it’s still open to the environment, enabling organic matter from the surroundings to enter the system at all times.
During the project we managed to deliver all projected results and more. The full integration with the satellite connection wasn’t originally foreseen, but lifts our product above that of our competitors. The combination of a robust and very durable power source with the satellite connection, makes our product suitable for practically any remote location where water level data is needed.
While working on the water level remote sensing product, additional requests from the market came up for other types of monitoring. These include: soil moisture, rainfall and electrical conductivity. The soil moisture product was developed on the side of the water level product, whereas a new project will start to use electrical conductivity and pH data as a proxy for water quality sensing in the beginning of 2025.
While working on the water level remote sensing product, additional requests from the market came up for other types of monitoring. These include: soil moisture, rainfall and electrical conductivity. The soil moisture product was developed on the side of the water level product, whereas a new project will start to use electrical conductivity and pH data as a proxy for water quality sensing in the beginning of 2025.