They are inspired by the way eels produce electricity, the battery cells that could power the biosensors of the future: from tiny devices embedded in human tissue to next-generation sensors and microrobots. They were developed at the British University of Oxford and described in the journal Nature. The new batteries open up applications in biology and medicine, from targeted drug delivery to therapies to accelerate wound healing.
Researchers led by Yujia Zhang managed to make one efficient and miniaturized energy source, two factors hitherto difficult to make coexist. The battery is made up of a row of five tiny droplets of hydrogel, a material composed mostly of water. Each droplet has a different salt composition: when cooled to four degrees, the droplets melt, allowing the ions (electrically charged atoms) to move from the more salty ones at the ends to those with less salts in the center. By connecting the two ends of the row of drops to electrodes, the energy produced by the movement of the ions is converted into electricity.
Tested in the laboratory, the drop battery produced energy for more than 30 minutes, for a maximum power of 65 nanowatts. The study authors also linked it to human progenitor nerve cells, demonstrating that their activity can be regulated by the current generated. Additionally, multiple units consisting of five drops each can be linked together to increase power.
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