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Alternative Energies Title: The Mobile Battery That Charges In One Minute Scientists have developed a battery that could allow a mobile phone to be charged and ready for use in one minute. The new aluminium power cell is also much safer than existing lithium technology, can be bent and damaged, and does not catch fire. The researchers at Stanford University in California say the battery can be recharged more often than usual batteries without losing its effectiveness. It has the potential to be a major breakthrough as electricity storage becomes increasingly important in tandem with renewable energy. Hongjie Dai, professor of chemistry at Stanford, said: "We have developed a rechargeable aluminium battery that may replace existing storage devices, such as alkaline batteries, which are bad for the environment, and lithium-ion batteries, which occasionally burst into flames. "Our new battery won't catch fire, even if you drill through it. Lithium batteries can go off in an unpredictable manner - in the air, the car or in your pocket." Besides safety, he said the team had transformed battery performance with "unprecedented charging times" of down to one minute being reported. Unlike previously developed aluminium batteries, which have been reported to die after just 100 charge-discharge cycles, the Stanford prototype has been found to withstand up to 7,500 charges. The typical lithium battery lasts for 1,000 cycles. In an article in this month's edition of the journal Nature, the authors wrote: "This was the first time an ultra-fast aluminium-ion battery was constructed with stability over thousands of cycles." Ming Gong, co-lead author of the Nature study, added: "Another feature of the aluminium battery is flexibility. "You can bend it and fold it, so it has the potential for use in flexible electronic devices. Aluminium is also a cheaper metal than lithium." Poster Comment: Bend me, shape me Post Comment Private Reply Ignore Thread Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/Latest Begin Trace Mode for Comment # 13. #1. To: Willie Green, Operation 40 (#0) I was going to post this piece I saw linked at Slashdot but you beat me to the punch. This one has more technical details. This is probably the first major advance in battery technology in 20 years or more. Alkalines, ni-cads, nickel-metal hydride, lithium, all seem inferior to these aluminum batteries. They still need to develop them further but they can find a market immediately. This isn't a "someday" technology.
#7. To: TooConservative (#1) They still need to develop them further but they can find a market immediately. Battery-powered push mowers. The politicians on the left coast will pass laws making them mandatory,and even provide financial aid (tax money from the rich that are not related to them) to those who can't afford to buy one.
#12. To: sneakypete (#7) (Edited) Battery-powered push mowers. The politicians on the left coast will pass laws making them mandatory,and even provide financial aid (tax money from the rich that are not related to them) to those who can't afford to buy one. I am not a very big "GreenTech" person, but I already have a Homelite Cordless electric mower. Had it for 3 years now. Other than the fact that it only gets 1 1/2 hours of mowing time for a 12 hour charge, I would still pay the $300 for it instead of a combustion model. Better than the $150 gas mower that costs much more in gas and maintenance over it's life.
#13. To: TheFireBert (#12) I would still pay the $300 for it instead of a combustion model. Good to know you are happy with it. I am guessing that a 1.5 hour run time is more than the typical homeowner would need or use. Used to have a neighbor back in the 50's that had a electric mower,and I was always impressed with how quiet it was. He had been some sort of electrician in the Navy,and a commercial electrician after the war. IIRC,he made it by bolting a 110V electric motor from a washing machine to a old mower deck,and just used the extension cords he used at work to keep it powered. Better than the $150 gas mower that costs much more in gas and maintenance over it's life. Not to mention the facts that gas is dangerous to store in garages in small cans or bottles,and that today's gas pretty much "dies" in 3 months and goes so flat it won't even start or run a lawn mower. Didn't used to be this way back when gas had lead instead of alcohol in it.I have literally started and ran cars that had been sitting for 20 years or more with the gas that was in it when it was parked back in the "old days".
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