March 26, 2009 -- The race is on to develop smaller, more powerful and more solid batteries for devices like laptop computers, cell phones, GPS receivers and other portable devices. Scientists at MIT are taking the opposite approach, developing large, eco-friendly stationary batteries made entirely from liquid metal that would store large amounts of power from wind farms or solar cells or serve as backup power sources for hospitals. "Since these batteries won't be in someone's hand or in a car, we don't have to make them crash-worthy, idiot-proof, and it doesn't have to operate at around body temperature," said Don Sadoway, a scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who, along with graduate student David Bradwell and fellow professor Gerbrand Ceder, is developing the molten metal battery. "Our batteries have no solid materials in them; no solid electrodes, no solid membranes, no solid anything," said Sadoway. Related Content:
Any battery, solid, liquid, or a combination of the two, is simply a way to store energy chemically. To do this, any battery needs three parts: a positively charged cathode, a negatively charged anode, and a membrane between the positive and negative charges. Most batteries, including the one in your laptop or TV remote, use solid materials like zinc or lithium cobalt for the cathode, graphite for the anode, and a liquid salt solution for the electrolytic membrane. Sadoway's battery is different. The anode, the cathode, the membrane, all of them are liquids, hot, molten, and sloshy liquids. Sadoway has tried many different combination of liquid materials during the last few years. One of the first compilations used molten antimony and magnesium as the charge holders with a layer of sodium sulfide between the two. The three layers don't mix with each other because each material has a different weight. They naturally separate into three layers. If something disturbs those layers they will naturally separate again because of their weight. Sadoway won't release specific details of his current battery materials. Whatever they are made up of, the batteries are encased in stainless steel and are about the size of a soda can. Get More NewsMouse Cloned From Long-Frozen CellResearchers create a mouse from a long-frozen cell. Will the mammoth be next?'Bubble' Could Protect AstronautsScientists say a "bubble" around a Mars-bound spaceship could protect astronauts.Big Reduction of Snowmobiles in Yellowstone ProposedA new plan would cut snowmobile use by 40 percent in Yellowstone.Microbes: Fuel of the Future?A reddish South American microbe is literally breathing fuel, say scientists.DNA Links Remains to Steve FossetDNA tests on two bones found in California confirm they are those of Steve Fossett.Women Carry More Bacteria Than MenSome bacteria prefer women, suggests a new study. But why?Ancient 'Water Monster' Facing ExtinctionA foot-long salamander that was a key part of Aztec legend is threatened by extinction.Grand Canyon's Youth ConfirmedThe Grand Canyon is millions of years younger than previously thought, argue geologists.My Take: E-Voting Not User FriendlyOpinion: Electronic voting machines don't always capture the intent of voters.SLIDE SHOW: Landscapes of TerrorWhat makes a place feel scary? There are scientific explanations.At 40, Brain and Body SlowThe part of the brain in charge of motion starts a gradual slide in middle age.Spiders, Scorpions Among World's Oldest CreaturesMany creepy crawlies have been on Earth much longer than previously believed.Blood-Sucking Vampire Bats Sing DuetsWhite-winged vampire bats "harmonize" with separated roost mates. |
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