Imagine a world where the battery on your favorite device doesn't get
low anymore. Researchers in Australia may have finally found the key to
an everlasting battery.
Smartphones, tablets, and other devices have
advanced significantly in power and functionality during the last
decade, yet one draining issue remains: battery life.
Researchers from RMIT University in Melbourne and Australian National
University have made a crucial advancement in the quest to create a
perpetual battery.
In a report published in the June 21 issue of Advanced Functional Materials,
the group--led by Arnan Mitchell, with assistance from Madhu Bhaskaran,
Sharath Sriram and Simon Ruffell--demonstrates how applying mechanical
pressure to thin piezoelectric film can generate electricity for a wide range of portable electronics.
According to the report, the combination of piezoelectric nanomaterials
and thin-film technology creates a massive opportunity for humans to
naturally deliver energy to power-hungry equipment.
Can you imagine not having to worry about needing to recharge?
In a quote to Physorg.com, Bhaskaran describes how integrated
piezoelectrics "could be integrated into running shoes to charge mobile
phones, enable laptops to be powered through typing or even used to
convert blood pressure into a power source for pacemakers." The group
has also hinted at this combined technology being cooked into a touch
screen, which would allow our taps and swipes to produce energy for a
battery. I'm sure many of you smartphone addicts would keep your
devices' batteries at 100 percent if that were the case.
Bhaskaran believes the key to accelerating this technology into the
mainstream lies in thin-film coating (combined with piezoelectric
nanomaterials), which solves the existing riddle of making this
technology cost-effective for mass production. However, challenges
remain. Finding a way to strengthen the energy generated by
piezoelectric materials, while keeping cost and size down, is still on
the drawing board.