Making electricity with scuba regulator, has it been done?

[Gone for diving]

Something I have thought about over the years is how to use the energy in a full dive tank to make power,
That can be used for dive light or heat your suit, some small load,
I don't expect to get a lot of power,
Just a small continuous supply through the dive is better than nothing...
It definitely will make it more complex, and probably not worth the hassle... BUT something I have always wondered about,

I realize you would probably need a buffer tank after the air turbine or something like that, and probably and small buffer storage battery as well,
And it probably will make more power when the tank is full, and less the emptier it gets.


I have seen small dental led generator on Ali Express and thought something like would maybe work, but would need a higher pressure rating

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[tursiops]

The potential energy stored in an AL80 is about 1300 kJ, or about 0.36 kWh. It is not all available, of course; maybe 0.2 kWh is extractable. See here.
A small 18650 Li-Ion cell is about 0.013 kWh. So it would take 16 of them to equal the AL80.
Since you mostly want to use the AL80 as a gas to breath, not as a power source for some heating unit or whatever, What you could perhaps extract from your tank to run a small generator is comparable to an 18650 cell or two....
I think I'd go with eh 18650s.
NOTE: if my numbers are wrong, I'm sure someone will correct them!

 

[FF / EMT]

NOTE: if my numbers are wrong, I'm sure someone will correct them!

Oh yea
Way off!
Should be able to get at least 1.21 jigawatts…

 

[broncobowsher]

Back in the late 80's or early 90's there was an air powered DPV. An air motor driving a prop. The motor exhaust fed into the mouthpiece. You want to talk about a way to blow your air consumption.

 

[Bierstadt]

That sounds in no way practical, but if you wanted to make yourself some prototypes as something fun to work on and see what you can do then go for it. Unfortunately the rate we consume gas does not lend itself to generating electricity, and obviously any system that gets between you and your gas supply is terrifying. On-land tests only I think.

 

[BoltSnap]

The potential energy stored in an AL80 is about 1300 kJ, or about 0.36 kWh

How did you get this number, 1300kj please?

 

[Gone for diving]

I know this is not accurate, but...

Which is 440 watts hr, for an 80cu ft.

I realize the heat created will disappear, loosing energy...
So let's say half is left, in the tank, 220watts hr, now at least half of that in generator inefficiency... gives you a 100watt hr to work with.
Give or take...

When a tank goes boom it seems like more than 220 watt hr

 

[tursiops]

How did you get this number, 1300kj please?

From the "see here" link in my post, where it is given for a 5 liter tank to 200 bar' I scaled up their number to 11 liters and 207 bars.

 

[BoltSnap]

From the "see here" link in my post, where it is given for a 5 liter tank to 200 bar' I scaled up their number to 11 liters and 207 bars.

Thanks, I missed that.

 

[Norwegian Cave Diver]

How about a small propeller mounted on my cave helmet!!! Hahaha. Would look so ridiculous but it's making me laugh. A trickle charger for my drysuit battery. Hahaha
Someone work the numbers!!!