Researchers with McGill’s Trottier Institute for Sustainability in Engineering and Design have developed a stretchable, eco-friendly battery suitable for use in wearable and implantable devices.
Researchers with McGill’s Trottier Institute for Sustainability in Engineering and Design have developed a stretchable, eco-friendly battery suitable for use in wearable and implantable devices. The battery, which uses citric or lactic acid and gelatin to achieve flexibility and performance without relying on toxic materials, stands to reduce electronic waste.
“We use a lot of batteries in our lab for wearable devices, and they eventually stop working and get thrown out,” said research supervisor Sharmistha Bhadra, Associate Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering. “This project asked whether we could make something biodegradable and stretchable that still performs well.”
The electrodes in conventional batteries are often made of heavy metals. The researchers replaced these harmful components with magnesium and molybdenum, commonly used in biodegradable battery designs, which degrade more easily in the environment. However, earlier studies have shown that magnesium-based biodegradable batteries have lower performance than conventional batteries.
Read More at: McGill University
Photo Credit: Sharmistha Bhadra
