Researchers at
Michigan Technological University in Houghton are trying to create a more sustainable, cheaper, longer-lasting battery, through the combined effort of the chemistry and chemical engineering departments.
Well, it's not quite a battery--it's a combination of a capacitor and a battery, in a device called an asymmetric capacitor. That in itself is not a new thing, as the combination of the two is advantageous over either a standard capacitor or a standard battery.
The difference is, a research team at Tech has made one that uses lightweight carbon foam in place of nickel to serve as a support structure and conductor for the electric charge in a battery.
"It’s lighter and cheaper, so we thought maybe we could use it as a scaffold, filling its holes with nickel oxyhydroxide," says Tony Rogers, associate professor of chemical engineering. Nickel oxyhydroxide is the material used in rechargeable batteries.
"The carbon foam we are using has 72 percent porosity," Rogers says. "That means 72 percent of its volume is empty space, so there's plenty of room for the nickel oxyhydroxide. The carbon foam could also be made of renewable biomass, and that’s attractive."
Biomass batteries? That's innovative thinking. Rogers says the light, long-lasting batteries would be ideal in handheld power tools and consumer electronics, and for some uses in hybrid electric vehicles.
The research is in the process of being patented, and is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, the Michigan Universities Commercialization Initiative, the Michigan Tech Research Excellence Fund and the Michigan Space Grant Consortium.
Writer: Sam Eggleston
Source: Tony Rogers, Michigan Technological University
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