Salt Powered Implantable Batteries
Lithium-ion batteries have limitations for implantable devices because of the potentially toxic chemicals that power them. In this piece, scientists at Fudan University (Shanghai) show “material” improvement: “….a highly safe family of flexible sodium-ion batteries (SIBs) based on a Na0.44MnO2 cathode, a nano-sized NaTi2(PO4)3@C anode, and various aqueous electrolytes containing Na+. The resulting belt- and fiber-shaped aqueous SIBs exhibit high volumetric energy and power density, high flexibility, and long life and thus can be safely applied in wearable electronic devices. When normal saline or cell-culture medium is used as the electrolyte, these SIBs can still work well, indicating potential application in implantable electronic devices. The fiber-shaped electrodes in Na+-containing aqueous electrolytes exhibit an electrochemical deoxygenation function, which could be applied in biological and medical fields.” MORE
Image Credit: ScienceDirect and Fudan University