THE FIRST “SOLAR BATTERY”

Batteries Included: A Solar Cell that Stores its Own Power; World’s first “solar battery” runs on light and air

Pam Frost Gorder, October 3, 2014 (Ohio State University)

“Is it a solar cell? Or a rechargeable battery?...Actually, the patent-pending device invented at The Ohio State University is both: the world’s first solar battery…a battery and a solar cell [hybrid device]…Key to the innovation is a mesh solar panel, which allows air to enter the battery, and a special process for transferring electrons between the solar panel and the battery electrode. Inside the device, light and oxygen enable different parts of the chemical reactions that charge the battery...Yiying Wu, professor of chemistry and biochemistry at Ohio State, says…their device brings down costs by 25 percent…[and eliminates most of the 20%] loss of electricity that normally occurs when electrons have to travel between a solar cell and an external battery…

“…[D]uring charging, light hits the mesh solar panel and creates electrons. Inside the battery, electrons are involved in the chemical decomposition of lithium peroxide into lithium ions and oxygen. The oxygen is released into the air, and the lithium ions are stored in the battery as lithium metal after capturing the electrons…When the battery discharges, it chemically consumes oxygen from the air to re-form the lithium peroxide…The mesh belongs to a class of devices called dye-sensitized solar cells…Based on early tests, Wu and his team think that the solar battery’s lifetime will be comparable to rechargeable batteries already on the market…” click here for more

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