An international team of scientists developed a small, cheap, and water-activated disposable paper batter that could minimize the environmental impacts of single-use electronics, according to the news release via Scimex.
They combined two cells in a single battery to power a host of low-power, single-use disposable electronic devices, such as smart labels for tracking objects, environmental sensors, and some medical diagnostic devices. With just two drops of water, the battery was activated within 20 seconds and had a stable 1.2 voltage, which is close to the standard 1.5 volts of a AA battery.
An employee of Sony demonstrates a new bio battery, generated from the cellilose of recycle papers, powering a fan (L) at the Eco-Products exhibition in Tokyo on december 15, 2011.
Just Add Water: Paper Battery Powers Single-Use Electronics
Although it is advisable to reuse and recycle small, simple, and low-powered electronic devices that can only be used once, researchers led by Switzerland's Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (EMPA) developed a novel paper batter that could make them eco-friendly.
The solution is to just add water to activate the paper battery. It is environment-friendly since it is biodegradable and can easily be discarded. The battery is developed for such single-use electronics to reduce their impacts on the environment.
New Scientist reported that the battery is made from paper coated with graphite and zinc dust so that when water is added, it can power tiny disposable electronics and allow for almost real-time use. The paper battery will stay dormant while it is dry and produce an electric current when added to water.
Professor Gustave Nyström from EMPA and his colleagues developed it using a rectangular strip of paper and graphite flakes as ink to print the word "EMPA" on one side that acts as a cathode and uses zinc powder on the other side as an anode. The paper contains salt to create an electrolyte but water is added for electrons to flow and power devices.
Paper Battery Can Last for One Hour
During the lab test, the two-cell version of the paper battery successfully powered an alarm clock with a liquid crystal display. According to a similar report from New Atlas, just two drops of water is enough to activate a single cell that could provide at least 1.2 volts within 20 seconds.
However, since the paper battery dries out naturally, its power could significantly drop within an hour. But it can still produce low voltage electricity of up to 0.5 volts for another hour once another two drops of water are added.
The team noted that the amount of zinc in the paper plays a significant role in the paper battery as it determines its capacity and can be tuned for different applications. Both zinc and graphite are biodegradable and recyclable with the right processes, which adds points to the paper battery as an environment-friendly power storage device.
Professor Nyström, the lead scientist of the project, who previously developed a biodegradable mini-capacitor, says that this novel paper battery could be used to track parcels, make the supply chain more efficient, and provide information about the materials used in the packet to help recycle food packaging.
He believes that further engineering could make the paper nearly not as much a limiting factor someday.
The team described the device in full in their paper titled "Water Activated Disposable Paper Battery," published in the journal Scientific Reports.
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