{"id":3499,"date":"2022-01-13T22:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-01-13T22:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/modernsciences.org\/staging\/4414\/?p=3499"},"modified":"2021-12-16T15:40:33","modified_gmt":"2021-12-16T15:40:33","slug":"new-biodegradable-thin-battery-has-a-heart-made-of-cellulose","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/modernsciences.org\/staging\/4414\/new-biodegradable-thin-battery-has-a-heart-made-of-cellulose\/","title":{"rendered":"New Biodegradable, Thin Battery Has a \u201cHeart\u201d Made of Cellulose"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Batteries remain a constant source of innovation for science, as our increasingly-mobile future with devices demands improvements upon improvements with our methods of power storage. Currently, targets are set towards several fronts: alternative materials, like lithium-<\/a>s<\/a>ulfur batteries<\/a>, flexible electronics, like the supercapacitor that\u2019s partially inspired by the design of an accordion<\/a>, and environmental friendliness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Researchers from Nanyang Technological University (NTU) didn\u2019t seem to get the memo of \u201cchoose a side,\u201d since these scientists decided to just cut the middleman and attack two fronts at once: they instead made a relatively thin, biodegradable battery. Their ambitious and promising find was published in the journal Advanced Science<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The team of scientists from Nanyang Technological University poses with their battery prototypes, each being a different version of the battery. (Nanyang Technological University, 2021) <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

This particular battery, measuring a measly 4 cm by 4 cm (1.6 in by 1.6 in) in one of its iterations, is \u201creportedly capable of powering a small electric fan for 45 minutes,\u201d according to a statement by New Atlas<\/a>. Power delivery is also reportedly uninterrupted, even if you twist, bend, or even cut off a piece of the battery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And if that sounds weird to you, they can do so to the battery since its heart is composed of cellulose paper that had the gaps between its fibers filled with hydrogel. Screen-printed on opposing sides of the paper are the battery electrodes: the anode made of zinc (Zn) and carbon black, while the cathode is composed of manganese (Mn) and nickel (Ni) in two separate cases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The entire battery is immersed in an electrolyte solution, then had gold (Au) applied to both its electrodes to give them a conductivity boost. All in all, the entire battery measures a very thin 0.4 mm (0.016 in) thick. And, since it\u2019s made of organic cellulose material, it can be broken down by soil microorganisms in under a month\u2014meaning yes, this thin battery is biodegradable, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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