Paper-Thin, Bendable Batteries in the Future - Bendable Batteries from Overseas
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Bendable Batteries from Overseas
Development of a usable, cost-effective bendable battery is not just limited to the United States. There is research being done around the world to try to produce a viable replacement battery for certain hand-held devices, which will ultimately make the devices smaller and lighter. This will no doubt lead to other effective applications of this kind of battery, which may completely change the idea of a battery from a bulky accessory to a small, lightweight alternative. This seems to be the natural progression of technology, much like the early cell phones, which were originally about the size of a typical house phone with large, obtrusive antennas, but now are small enough to fit in the palm of your hand. Ten years from now, we may look back and see the batteries of today as ancient.
One company, located in Tel Aviv, is working on developing this innovative bendable battery, which should be the new look of portable batteries in the near future. This company based in Israel has been developing a flexible battery since 1997. Currently, they use their bendable batteries in mainly two different sectors: cosmetics and RFID labeling systems. The cosmetics sector mainly focuses on micro-electric patch technology, which is used to aid various skin conditions such as acne or aging. Power Paper's RFID labeling sector mainly works with manufacturers who would benefit from a tiny battery that can be used in conjunction with scanners to create an effective labeling system. This labeling system can be a better alternative than other labeling systems because it is renewable, whereas paper labels can only be used once and then are thrown away.
Aside from their appearance, the bendable batteries produced by Power Paper Ltd. produce energy much like traditional alkaline batteries. They consist of two electrodes separated by an electrolyte, which is the chemical that generates the negative ions. It is only when you connect something, like a motor for instance, that you complete the circuit and power is transferred, to the motor in this case.
The chemical mix of zinc and manganese is what makes the electrolyte, but Power Paper will not release the specific balance of each in their chemical mixture. The CEO of Power Paper Ltd., Baruch Levanon, refers to the chemical secret of their batteries as the "Coca-Cola formulas" because of how secret Coca-Cola originally kept their recipes. They keep this secret classified, and for good reason. This is a potentially huge market in the future. The only thing that the leaders of Power Paper Ltd. will say about this mixture is that it has the consistency of ink, and is environmentally safe.
Power Paper Ltd. manufactures their batteries in much the same way that a printing press produces newspapers. The ink-like chemicals (electrolytes) are put onto paper, or another flexible material, which then forms a battery that is about the thickness of a piece of paper. The surface area of these batteries can vary, depending upon how much power you want to get out of a single battery. For instance, in order to get the same amount of life as a typical AA battery, the bendable battery would need to by about one square foot in size. Each paper-sized battery produces about 1.5 volts, which is very similar to conventional batteries.
Right now, these thin batteries are being used only for small applications such as tagging, cosmetics, and even some greeting cards. The CEO of Power Paper Ltd. says that they are in development of different applications as we speak. One of these applications could be a smart card, which would be a credit card sized card that could provide a host of information via a tiny computer powered by a paper-thin battery. Another upcoming application would be for luggage tags at airports. The airlines would be better suited to track your luggage with electronic tags put on your luggage that could eventually have GPS capabilities. The CEO of Power Paper Ltd. says that bendable batteries for use in cell phones, laptops, and other portable devices are definitely in the future, but not in the near future. They will continue to produce thin batteries for smaller applications for now.
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