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Scientists Roll Out Paper Batteries

We're hoping for fold-able cell phones

By Heather McPherson,  Newser User

Posted Aug 14, 2007 5:50 PM CDT
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(Newser) – Scientists have come up with a paper-like substance that can act as a power source, Scientific American reports. The thin, flexible substance—composed of cellulose, carbon nanotubes, and liquid salts—can be used as both a battery and a supercapacitor, which can deliver quick bursts of high power. What's more, it can be cut, rolled up, or bent just like paper.

The paper batteries also can withstand temperatures as high as 350 F, without bursting into flames, and might eventually be able to be rolled off of a printing press.  The battery is the product of a team effort by three separate labs at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute—biopolymers, nanotubes and electronics.

Unlike current batteries, which contribute heavily to pollution, These devices are lightweight and flexible and are primarily composed of cellulose paper%u2014an environmentally friendly and biocompatible material.
Unlike current batteries, which contribute heavily to pollution, "These devices are lightweight and flexible and are primarily composed of cellulose paper%u2014an environmentally friendly and biocompatible...   (Shutterstock.com)
This undated handout photo provided by the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the U.S. (PNAS) shows a battery that looks like a sheet of paper and can be bent and twisted, trimmed with scissors or molded into any needed shape has...
This undated handout photo provided by the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the U.S. (PNAS) shows a battery that looks like a sheet of paper...   (Associated Press)
We have a paper battery, supercapacitor and battery-supercapacitor hybrid device that could be used in a variety of energy storage applications, says biological and chemical engineer Robert Linhardt of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (R.P.I.) in Troy, N.Y.
"We have a paper battery, supercapacitor and battery-supercapacitor hybrid device that could be used in a variety of energy storage applications," says biological and chemical engineer Robert Linhardt...   (Shutterstock.com; Composite)
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Related Links

"I wonder when will such technology mature and integrated into everyday devices that we use"
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"I'm not even going to try to describe how it works"
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Could it power a car?
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power • battery • carbon nanotubes • paper battery • cellulose • supercapacitor

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