A rechargeable cement battery is becoming a real possibility and could change the way you store energy, turning the walls of your home into one giant battery.
Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology (Sweden) have developed cement batteries capable of storing about 10 times more energy than those developed so fareven if for the moment they are still hundreds of times less energy dense than a lithium-ion battery.
To make the structure, a cement-based mixture with small amounts of short carbon fibers inside is incorporated with a metal clad carbon fiber mesh: iron for the anode and nickel for the cathode, according to the research team led by Dr Emma Zhang.
Results from previous studies looking at concrete battery technology showed very poor performance, so we realized we had to think differently, to find another way to produce the electrode. This particular idea that we have developed, which is also rechargeable, has never been explored before. We now have a lab-scale proof of concept.
Emma Zhang.
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Batteries in a low carbon economy
Energy storage and its technology are becoming increasingly important as the world moves towards renewable energy and a low-carbon economy.
Storage technology plays a critical role in meeting emission reduction targets because it can help transmit and distribute electricity and store energy from renewable sources such as solar and wind power. Batteries can help make up for the times when the sun isn’t shining or the wind isn’t blowing.
And concrete battery development is part of a larger conversation about how to develop improved, high-performance batteries.
We envision that in the future, this technology could allow entire sections of multi-storey buildings to be made from functional concrete. Considering the fact that any concrete surface could have a layer of this electrode embedded in it, we are talking about huge volumes of functional concrete.
Emma Zhang.
More information: World’s first rechargeable cement-based batteries | Chalmer
