Scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have discovered an energy source that you can see only through a microscope.
The researchers are trying to create a new technology to produce environmentally friendly battery to power electronics. Tiny wires, known as nanotubes are used to create a powerful wave of energy, according to Michael Strano, and MIT associate professor of chemical engineering.
After coating these wires with a layer of fuel, Strano said his team generated a so-called thermonuclear wave that may be used to power electronics, computers and cell phones. "This could lead to batteries that are up to 10 times smaller and have the same power output..... " Strano told CNN Radio. He also said "some of the advantages of this technology (are) you can generate a lot of power from a very, very small device."
Most batteries on the market now are made from highly toxic heavy metals, which are bad for the environment - metals like lead, nickle and cadmium. Batteries made from this new technology would be completely nontoxic, Strano said.
"The materials we use to make these thermopower waves are organic. They're not grown naturally, but they're made of carbon. In other words, you could essentially incinerate them, or they would degrade over time, there's no heavy metals residue," Strano said.
Energy savings is another potential benefits in using these batteries. "Most people don't realize a battery sitting unused in your laptop is leaking its power away." Strano said. "if you take all the laptop batteries that are produced in one year, in the off state, they're leaking an amount of power during that year that we could store in a small nuclear reactor ... and that's power that's essentially lost and dissipated just from you laptop batteries."
Source: Shelby Lin Erdman, CNN
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