Scientists have been on the move in recent decades, each trying their best to solve the world’s energy problems by thinking outside the box.

And while some solutions are complex, this one is simple – maybe not in design, but in concept.

The scientists in this experiment sought to find a way to capture the power put off by gas-powered combustion engines. They do produce energy, but nearly 75% of it is lost as heat off the engine and through the tailpipe before it can be captured or reused.

They thought it they could figure out a way to catch some of those wasted emissions, they could increase the efficiency of even regular old cars.

This device is supposed to turn exhaust heat into electricity, and researchers say that the simple design can be added to any car’s tailpipe, or the exhaust vent of any vehicle at all. They published their study in ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, stating the prototype, called a thermoelectric generator, produces an output of 40 Watts.

That’s enough to power a lightbulb, but they’re sure that they’re onto something, and that it can be scaled up.

Thermoelectric generators are placed near or on something producing waste hear, drawing electrons from the hot side to the cold side and creating an electric current. In this case, researchers faced a challenge in maintaining temperature difference, because the cold part of their generator kept heating up, too, resulting in the current stopping.

Since they wanted their device to be practical and easy to use, solutions like water cooling were put at the bottom of the list. Instead, they used a heatsink design. It uses a cylinder with a fins that wrap around the tailpipe, which provides additional surface area to force convection of heat.

They realize they have a long way to go as far as capturing energy output, but they do believe this is a promising solution to am every-growing problem.

“These results could potentially pave the way toward the integration of TE devices into complex system designs for practical applications.”

This is a truly innovative and exciting idea.

I hope this is one of those studies that really takes off.

If you think that’s impressive, check out this story about a “goldmine” of lithium that was found in the U.S. that could completely change the EV battery game.