homehome Home chatchat Notifications


This New Micronuclear Battery Could Last For Decades

Nuclear batteries offer a lifespan that lithium batteries can't match. But don't expect them powering consumer devices anytime soon.

Rupendra Brahambhatt
October 16, 2024 @ 1:38 pm

share Share

The micronuclear battery demonstrated by scientists at Soochow University. Image credits: Kai Li et al./Nature

Lithium-ion batteries power the modern world, from electric cars to smartphones. But even the best of these batteries wear out within a decade, maxing out after 1,000 recharges. For many uses, that’s not long enough.

Now, researchers have unveiled a promising alternative: a micronuclear battery that could last far longer, potentially for decades. Its creators say it could deliver energy for remote devices, medical implants, and even spacecraft, where replacing batteries is virtually impossible.

Harnessing Nuclear Power in Tiny Batteries

The proposed micronuclear battery is made up of americium, a man-made radioactive element produced during the fission of uranium and plutonium in nuclear reactors. It is often considered as a nuclear waste.

To make a nuclear battery, the study authors utilized the power of radioactive decay, a naturally occurring process in which unstable radioisotopes disintegrate into smaller, more stable atoms, releasing energy in the form of radiation. 

When americium atoms undergo radioactive decay, this process also results in the emission of alpha particles containing high amounts of energy. However, the alpha particles lose energy quickly as they interact with surrounding matter. To prevent energy loss, the researchers fitted americium inside a polymer.

The energy of the contained alpha particles made the americium glow. Next, they attached this glowing crystal to a photovoltaic cell which converted the glow (light) into electricity. They placed this entire battery setup in a quartz cell.

For over 200 hours, the researchers tested this system. “The device produced a stable supply of electricity at a relatively high energy with unprecedented efficiency — and it only needed minimal amounts of radioactive material to function,” said Shuao Wang, a professor at Soochow University and one of the study’s authors.

A Long Lifespan, With Limits

Where conventional batteries degrade with each recharge cycle, a nuclear battery’s lifespan is tied to the radioactive material’s half-life. Americium, in this case, has a half-life of 7,380 years. You can confidently say that you would never have to recharge a nuclear battery in your entire lifetime.

That said, this new design isn’t expected to last millennia. The other components, like the polymer and photovoltaic cell, will degrade over time due to radiation exposure. Still, the researchers believe the battery could last for at least several decades—a vast improvement over the ten-year life of lithium-ion batteries.

However, there’s a significant drawback: power output. This micronuclear battery produces far less energy than typical batteries. “You’d need about 40 billion of these batteries to power a 60-watt light bulb,” the researchers admitted.

“Ideally, we envision our micronuclear battery being used to power miniature sensors in remote or challenging environments where traditional power sources are impractical, like deep-sea exploration, space missions or remote monitoring stations,” Wang added in an interview with New Scientist.

Nevertheless, this is just a proof of concept. As scientists refine the technology, they hope to increase energy output and address safety concerns tied to nuclear materials.

The study is published in the journal Nature.    

share Share

This Rare Viking Burial of a Woman and Her Dog Shows That Grief and Love Haven’t Changed in a Thousand Years

The power of loyalty, in this life and the next.

This EV Battery Charges in 18 Seconds and It’s Already Street Legal

RML’s VarEVolt battery is blazing a trail for ultra-fast EV charging and hypercar performance.

DARPA Just Beamed Power Over 5 Miles Using Lasers and Used It To Make Popcorn

A record-breaking laser beam could redefine how we send power to the world's hardest places.

Why Do Some Birds Sing More at Dawn? It's More About Social Behavior Than The Environment

Study suggests birdsong patterns are driven more by social needs than acoustics.

Nonproducing Oil Wells May Be Emitting 7 Times More Methane Than We Thought

A study measured methane flow from more than 450 nonproducing wells across Canada, but thousands more remain unevaluated.

CAR T Breakthrough Therapy Doubles Survival Time for Deadly Stomach Cancer

Scientists finally figured out a way to take CAR-T cell therapy beyond blood.

The Sun Will Annihilate Earth in 5 Billion Years But Life Could Move to Jupiter's Icy Moon Europa

When the Sun turns into a Red Giant, Europa could be life's final hope in the solar system.

Ancient Roman ‘Fast Food’ Joint Served Fried Wild Songbirds to the Masses

Archaeologists uncover thrush bones in a Roman taberna, challenging elite-only food myths

A Man Lost His Voice to ALS. A Brain Implant Helped Him Sing Again

It's a stunning breakthrough for neuroprosthetics

This Plastic Dissolves in Seawater and Leaves Behind Zero Microplastics

Japanese scientists unveil a material that dissolves in hours in contact with salt, leaving no trace behind.