Adapter reduces chargers' wasted energy emissions

Developed by Sanowar Khan, professor of instrumentation and sensors at the university, the patented design relies on a micro-switch, which can be embedded in any type of connector between the charger and the device. This prevents the flow of electricity when the device is not connected.

‘If you visualise your adapter, you will have a terminal that is connected to the socket, which we call primary, and the other terminal that is on the mobile end, which we call secondary,’ Khan explained. 

‘When you connect your mobile phone, the primary circuit is switched on by the very fact that you are connecting your mobile to the adapter. When you disconnect the mobile telephone, it automatically disconnects the primary.’

Khan told The Engineer that there are studies that show that 65 per cent of UK mobile phone users leave their chargers plugged in once a week.

Estimates also show that redundant adapters are responsible for six gigawatt-hours of energy – equivalent to six large power stations each working for one hour – being wasted each year. According to the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in California, the amount of standby energy used globally is responsible for one per cent of carbon-dioxide emissions.