Scientists claim that they have developed a technology that allows them to use any material in order to create energy from thin air, as long as the air is sufficiently humid.

The study was led by University of Massachusetts at Amherst professor of engineering Jun Yao. It examined the use of tiny nanopores in materials that allow vapor to pass in a manner that generates a charge.

The team of Yao developed a prototype called “Air-Gen” which can generate a small amount of power. The product is still a long way from being able generate enough power to be useful.

Yao says that Air-gens are stacked together, with air spaces between them, even though one prototype produces only a tiny amount of power — enough to power almost a single dot on a large screen. He added that storing the electricity was a different issue.

Yao estimates that approximately 1 billion Airgens stacked so they are about the same size as a refrigerator could produce a Kilowatt, and partially power a house in ideal conditions. The team aims to reduce both the number and size of devices required by improving the efficiency of the tool. It could be difficult to achieve.

The global elites spent more than two decades trying to find “clean” energy sources, but this goal has proved elusive. Wind turbines have a reputation for being inefficient. The demand for lithium due to the increase in electric cars has also led to a massive environmental impact and an explosion in unsafe mining practices in the Third World.