A new flexible type of battery for wearable electronics. Free Technical Library News

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A new flexible type of battery for wearable electronics

31.01.2020

Electronics are used everywhere: in pockets and purses, and increasingly they are located directly on our skin or even sewn into our clothes.

But the adoption of wearable electronics has so far been limited by their need to draw power from bulky, rigid batteries, which reduce usability and can pose a safety risk due to chemicals leaking or burning.

Stanford researchers have developed a soft and stretchable battery that uses a special type of plastic to store energy more securely than the flammable compounds used in conventional batteries today.

The use of plastics or polymers in batteries is not new. For some time, lithium-ion batteries have used polymers as electrolytes - an energy source that transports negative ions to the positive pole of the battery. Until now, however, these polymer electrolytes have been flowable gels, which in some cases may leak or ignite.

To avoid such risks, Stanford researchers have developed a polymer that is hard and stretchable, not sticky and potentially leaky, and yet carries an electrical charge between the battery poles. In lab testing, the experimental battery maintained a constant power output even when it was compressed, folded and stretched to nearly double its original length.

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Peat batteries 22.10.2021

In Estonia, they learned how to process natural fuel into components of charging cells. The latest technology can solve the problem of the high cost of batteries and take a step towards affordable electric vehicles.

Picturesque Estonia in the north of Europe is almost a quarter covered with swamps. The country is very rich in peat deposits. Scientists from the University of Tartu have learned how to obtain the chemicals needed for electric batteries.

"There is a lot of peat in Estonia. Basically, we do not use it. Although it is suitable as a fertilizer and fuel for heating houses. We pass this peat through a double synthesis and make coal powder from it. Which is suitable for the production of sodium batteries," he said. Professor of Chemistry at the University of Tartu Anne Lust.

"We need cheap means to store huge amounts of electricity. The only way out is batteries. In particular, sodium-ion batteries, which are much cheaper than lithium ones," added Anne Lust.

The global demand for lithium is growing, and by 2025 it will reach 1 million tons per year. Leading automakers have already announced a full or partial transition to the production of electric cars from 2025.

The inventors call on the Estonian authorities to invest in a promising direction and allocate funds for the construction of a plant for the production of peat batteries. However, such batteries still have to be tested and prove their market and production feasibility. Only after that it will be possible to start mass production of available batteries.

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