Food is not only a part of our diet, but now it becomes a fully rechargeable battery. This is how it proves A job It was carried out by a team of researchers from an Italian institute of technology.
As they explained in their study Recently released, you can get a new type of battery made entirely of food or entirely edible materials. A prototype device operates at 0.65 volts (very harmless) and delivers 48 microamps of current for 12 minutes, which is within the range needed to power small electronic devices.
As lead author Mario Chieroni, a researcher in molecular electronics at the Italian Institute of Technology, explains:
Potential future applications range from sensors that can monitor edible circuits and hygiene conditions to dynamic sensors to monitor food storage conditions. Also, given the safety level of these batteries, they can be used in children’s toys, where the risk of consumption is high.
Although it must be outside the body to recharge, the battery maintains its charge for dozens of cycles, says the team behind the development. The prototype developed here is about a square centimeter in size, although they are already working on making it smaller. According to Kaironi:
In fact, we’re already making more efficient devices and reducing the overall size. These improvements will also be tested to power edible soft robots in the future.
And What can it be used for? As they explain, devices like “dwarf” cameras are capable of scanning and diagnosing diseases, and this is where the researchers think an “edible” battery could help.
Not only that. They also speak to the field of food quality control: before the control device is digested with the food, the devices can be used to ensure that the food is safe and meets the required standards while it is in the gut.
It sounds very futuristic, but that’s the idea they’re working on, and “we hope they’ll inspire other scientists to develop safer batteries for a truly sustainable future,” they conclude.
