Scientists at Stanford Developing New Paper Battery

New developments are abounding in the battery world and exciting new revelations are being made, however these developments are years away from being commercial available for general market use and sales. However, one new battery which uses paper could be available within a relatively short period of time.

Scientists at Standford are developing a new form of uber light, bendable super capacitors as well as batteries which use plain paper coated in ink formed from silver nanowires and carbon nanotubes. Yi Cui, an assistant professor for materials science and engineering, has been working with a group of students to develop the lightweight batteries.

Recently the work on the small batteries, which use a small diameter which helps the ink for the nanomaterials stick more forceably to the porous paper, was published in The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The new paper battery will be more durable than other devices which were developed previously in a similar manner. These former devices relied on plastic ink which was not as reliable as a viscous substance. This new battery paper can withstand crumbling, folding, and saturation without malfunctioning.

The newly developed paper battery will be available for electric cars, hybrid cars, wind energy, and solar panel systems. According to a professor of chemistry at UC Berkeley in California the battery could potentially be ready for commercial production in the near future.

Energy Matters reported in 2009 that many new emerging battery technologies could, in the future, replace traditional batteries which are used in some situations in renewable energy production.