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Scientists Develop A Biodegradable Paper Battery

Batteries are becoming a major problem in the world of waste disposal. We use so many of them in our appliances and due to the acids they contain, it’s estimated that the UK alone sends around 20,000 tonnes of them to the tip each year. Now, rechargeable batteries are massively better now than they were 20 years ago and I mean massively! Even so, if you’re anything like me, you can’t leave a pound shop without a pack of AA batteries.

In a report via SkyNews though, in what could change battery designs moving forward, scientists have been able to develop a 100% biodegradable battery using just paper and polymers.

Biodegradable Batteries Are Not New!

The technology for a biodegradable battery isn’t new. We’ve actually seen several designs over the years. The problem is though that most of them couldn’t hold a particularly strong charge. This new ‘biobattery’, however, is reportedly capable of holding a significant charge and better still, thanks to some clever polymer design, breaks down when in contact with water.

When Can We Expect These?

As part of a development at the Binghampton University, State University of New YorkProfessor Sean Choi said: “There’s been a dramatic increase in electronic waste and this may be an excellent way to start reducing that. Our hybrid paper battery exhibited a much higher power-to-cost ratio than all previously reported paper-based microbial batteries.”

These ‘biobatteries’ are reportedly cheap to make and could, in the very near future, be released to replace the current lead/acid we’ve seen for quite a long time. Sadly though, no further details about them are available. Then again, if this is on the way soon, you wouldn’t necessarily expect them to release the blueprints, would you?

What do you think? Could this idea replace standard batteries? – Let us know in the comments!