Úterý, 19. března 2024

First steps to a bio-compatible ion current battery

First steps to a bio-compatible ion current battery

Engineers at the University of Maryland have invented a new kind of battery that uses the same ion-based energy system using by living organisms and could be used for medical interfaces.

The new battery moves electrons around in the device to deliver energy that is a flow of ions. "My intention is for ionic systems to interface with human systems," said Prof Liangbing Hu, professor of materials science at the University of Maryland, College Park, head of the group that developed the battery where ions flow through grass fibres.

"So I came up with the reverse design of a battery," he said. "In a typical battery, electrons flow through wires to interface electronics, and ions flow through the battery separator. In our reverse design, a traditional battery is electronically shorted so that electrons are flowing through the metal wires. Then ions have to flow through the outside ionic cables. In this case, the ions in the ionic cable - here, grass fibres -- can interface with living systems."

This would allow a more effective interface in medical systems. "Potential applications might include the development of the next generation of devices to micro-manipulate neuronal activities and interactions that can prevent and/or treat such medical problems as Alzheimer's disease and depression," said researcher Jianhua Zhang, PhD, a staff scientist at the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), part of the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda.

"The battery could be used to develop medical devices for the disabled, or for more efficient drug and gene delivery tools in both research and clinical settings, as a way to more precisely treat cancers and other medical diseases," said Zhang, who performed biological experiments to test that the new battery successfully transmitted current to living cells. "Looking far ahead on the scientific horizon, one hopes also that this invention may help to establish the possibility of direct machine and human communication," he said.

Sdílet článek na sociálních sítích

Partneři

Asekol - zpětný odběr vysloužilého elektrozařízení
Ekolamp - zpětný odběr světelných zdrojů
ELEKTROWIN - kolektivní systém svetelné zdroje, elektronická zařízení
EKO-KOM - systém sběru a recyklace obalových odpadů
INISOFT - software pro odpady a životní prostředí
ELKOPLAST CZ, s.r.o. - česká rodinná výrobní společnost která působí především v oblasti odpadového hospodářství a hospodaření s vodou
NEVAJGLUJ a.s. - kolektivní systém pro plnění povinností pro tabákové výrobky s filtry a filtry uváděné na trh pro použití v kombinaci s tabákovými výrobky
E.ON Energy Globe oceňuje projekty a nápady, které pomáhají šetřit přírodu a energii
Ukliďme Česko - dobrovolnické úklidy
Kam s ním? - snadné a rychlé vyhledání míst ve vašem okolí, kde se můžete legálně zbavit nechtěných věcí a odpadů