Paper-thin Batteries Made from Algae

[kashyap putra]

How would sound to make someone a gift in a form of a piece   of paper which lights up showing words like "Happy Anniversary." This   thing could be possible thanks a new biodegradable battery made of   cellulose.
   
Scientists from all over the world trying to develop thin, flexible,   lightweight, inexpensive, environmentally friendly batteries built   totally from nonmetal parts. Conducting polymers are among the most   promising materials for these batteries but until now this hasn't been   quite possible because they couldn't hold a charge for a long time.

A   green algae known as Cladophora seems to be the solution for this new   battery. This plant can be found on beaches all over the world.

The   cellulose made by this algae has a very large surface area which is 100   times bigger than the cellulose found in paper, allowing scientist to   increase a couple of times the amount of conducting polymer available   for use in the new device, making it possible to better recharge, hold   and discharge electricity.

A nanotechnologist at Uppsala   University in Sweden, Maria Strømme, declared: "We have long hoped to   find some sort of constructive use for the material from algae blooms   and have now been shown this to be possible." She continued: "This   creates new possibilities for large-scale production of environmentally   friendly, cost-effective, lightweight energy storage systems."

The   new batteries are made of extremely thin layers of conducting polymer   just 40 to 50 nanometers or billionths of a meter wide coating algae   cellulose fibers only 20 to 30 nanometers wide that were collected into   paper sheets.

They could sustain from 50 to 200 percent more   charge than similar conducting polymer batteries, and after the   technology is optimized, they can become a serious contender to   commercial lithium batteries. Another great thing is the fact that they   recharge in a short time, from 11 seconds to eight minutes, while   conventional rechargeable batteries take at least one hour.

This   new battery showed 6% percent loss through 100 charging cycles, while a   comparable polymer battery showed a 50 percent drop in the amount of   charge it could hold after 60 cycles of discharging and recharging.


source:foxtech.org