We all love battery-powered gadgets, but portable power supplies have a devastating impact on the environment. Fortunately, batteries of a new, "green" type are expected to appear in the near future. Toxic components in them are replaced with less harmful materials - for example, leaves and sugar. Other innovations appeal to nature to make batteries more durable, more efficient and less harmful to the environment when disposed of at end of life. For example, a gold nanowire battery - it was created by accident, but can make lithium-ion batteries obsolete. At the end of its useful life, this disposable battery dissolves in water, making it easy to reuse its components.
Green battery with leaves
A group of researchers at the University of Maryland set out to find an inexpensive material for the battery anode. The perfect material was found on the university campus. It turned out that oak leaves can be heated up to 1000 degrees Celsius, thereby destroying carbon structures, and then saturating the natural pores of the leaf with electrolyte. The result is a plant-based anode that acts similar to traditional battery components. Research is continuing with other natural materials like peat moss, banana peels and melon peels, in the hopes of creating a natural battery of the future.
Instant graphene battery
Scientists are trying to create batteries with a longer service life. The University of Swinburne in Australia has created a graphene-based battery that demonstrates high charging rates while having an almost unlimited lifespan. In the supercapacitor battery, lithium is replaced by graphene, while eliminating all the disadvantages of lithium and reducing the negative impact of battery production on the environment. A graphene supercapacitor is fully charged in a few seconds, is able to withstand more recharge cycles, and is cheaper to manufacture than traditional lithium-ion batteries.
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Sweet and cheap: a sugar-based battery
The Virginia Institute of Technology has created a sugar-based battery that lasts longer than previous sugar devices. Maltodextrin, a polysaccharide obtained by partial hydrolysis of starch, is separated from natural sugar and used as fuel. When combined with air, the battery emits electrons from the sugar solution and generates electricity. Sugar is cheap and affordable, which means that the "sugar" battery will be like that. In addition, the battery is biodegradable.
The eternal "golden" battery
The unexpected discovery made at the University of California, Irvine, could be a technological breakthrough that leaves lithium-ion batteries far behind. The group has created a nanowire battery using gold and some of the latest materials, while allowing hundreds of thousands of recharge cycles without compromising performance, unlike lithium-ion batteries. The battery consists of insulated nanowire electrodes with a thin gold core, sheathed with manganese dioxide and a gel electrolyte, such as plexiglass. Although the original goal was to find new ways to increase the battery's capacity, the result was a way to create batteries with virtually unlimited life.
Battery dissolving in water
Not everyone needs a self-destructing battery, but for some applications such a device would be very useful - for example, in cases where used disposable batteries enter the environment and pollute it. Such a battery was created at Iowa State University, it self-destructs when exposed to light, heat or liquid. This ability is suitable for military applications, and other "temporary" devices that require power for a limited amount of time. Some medical devices and environmental sensors fall into this category. The used battery dissolves in water without long-term impact on the environment.
Edible salt water battery
It may hardly be necessary to eat the battery, but you can still chew parts of this battery if you suddenly need to. In an attempt to demonstrate how eco-friendly their battery is, Aquion Energy's Jay Whitacre ate parts of a brine battery and was even able to talk about it. This battery is mainly composed of natural materials such as soil, cotton, carbon and salt solution as an electrolyte. It is unlikely that the battery will become a desirable food, but it demonstrates environmental friendliness rare for energy storage devices.
This battery is intended for large-scale applications, such as a backup drive for the home or office, powered by renewable energy - wind or solar. It can also be recharged from the power system during periods of reduced consumption in order to consume the charge during peak loads when the price of electricity rises.
Vadim Tarabarko