Imprint Energy seems to be getting ready to revolutionize
the portable power industry for more than just the average consumer.
Something we don’t always stop to consider is how our bulky
lithium-ion batteries—or other batteries for that matter—tend to demand the
product to be designed with a lot of consideration going into that battery, yet
IE (Imprint Energy) has and here’s their response: a screen-printed zinc
battery that incorporates a solid polymer and metal oxide to create the reaction
needed to power our electronics.[1] There are a few reasons this is so
revolutionary. Firstly, previous
incarnations of zinc-based batteries needed a liquid electrolyte to create the
reaction needed to produce power. While
this worked and could be recharged, the recharging would start creating
dendrites (little “fingers”) that would hinder and eventually make it
impossible to charge the battery. IE
solved this with their solid electrolyte polymer layer. Secondly, much of the bulk in today’s
lithium-ion batteries is the protective packaging to make it safer for consumer
use.[2] Don’t know about you, but I find that a
little unsettling.
Chemistry lesson aside, this has a multiplicity of practical
applications in the modern world.
Technology is getting more compressed all the time, but now we have a
potential power source that can harness more energy in a single charge, be printed
onto a sheet for the product and, in time, a power source with comparably lower
price tag to producers and consumers.
Wafer-thin one-off environmental sensors, an overhaul on watch and
hearing aid battery designs and sleeker blood glucometers are just a few quick ideas
that come to mind. Also worth
consideration may be pairing it with solar cell technologies in our consumer
electronics, such as phones, GPS or laptops.
The only limit to this revolution is current technology, but
that hindrance may not be around much longer since prototypes are in production
even now.
Sources:
ExtremeTech.com, Geek.com and the Imprint Energy website.
