New Battery Technology Powers For 12 Years

wellington map writes "University of Wisconsin-Madison scientists say they are developing a new lithium battery technology capable of making batteries smaller, last longer and, soon, accept a charge from outside the body without the need for surgery. These organosilicon batteries are projected to power tiny implantable devices for more than 12 years."

Comments

Re:Blegh.

[Anonymous Coward]

Also the summary doesn't make sense without the word 'pacemaker' in there somewhere. I had to actually read the article!

Battery Lifetime

[divide overflow]

From the article:

A critical advantage of the new battery technology is lifespan: "If you're going to implant these things, you want a (battery) lifetime of at least 10 years," said West, whose organosilicon batteries are projected to power tiny implantable devices for more than 12 years.

I presume that "10 year minimum lifetime" is the typical lifespan of the the receiver of the implantable device.

Step backwards

[dustrider]

Best thing I've seen for implanted devices, such as cochlear implants is an article from two years ago by some japanese researchers than managed to build a fuel cell based on blood.

It mimics the processes of mitochondria in human cells, i.e. uses glucose and O2 to create some form of ionisation.

So why have a battery that expires in 12 years when you could just have something that is indeffinately powered by your own body processes, and lose a little weight in the process.

http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/08/03/10598492 78131.html

Re:Step backwards

[rufty_tufty]

That was always a weight loss idea of mine...
First you need to implant a couple of discrete tubes into a major vein and artery (how you stop the body from forming clots in them when not in use though I don;t know).
Then when you want to loose weight you wear this shirt that plugs into these tubes. The jacket burns the glucose and O2 and radiates the resulting heat keeping you warm at the same time.

If too many deposits build up then it's easier to buy a new jacket than replace an implant.

<silly voice>
Welcome to the world of tomorrow!
</silly voice>

Re:Step backwards

[jamesh]

Along the same lines, it seems like they have accomplished two mutually unnecessary feats. If it can be charged from outside the body, then it hardly needs to last 12 years does it?

If you created a battery that should be charged every 12 months (but would run for, say, 36 months in case you were a bit slack about your yearly checkup+recharge), it could be much smaller than the 12 year version. And I for one would feel much better knowing I wasn't carrying around so much lithium.

Make sure you don't use the cheaper third party battery though, they've been known to explode :)

Lithium?

[Blitzenn]

Sounds good until the first one leaks and kills it's host. Lithium in the human body is a dangerous substance to mess with. To make a battery out of it, requires that you cause it to become unstable, shed electrons. Lithium also makes a great propellant and explosive. Lithium is also used as a drug. Unfortunately it's use is precluded in patients with significant renal or cardiovascular disease, severe debilitation or dehydration, or sodium depletion, since the risk of lithium toxicity is very high in such patients. These are exactly the same patients that would be candidates to receive such devices. The risk of leakage may be very small, but the toxicity associated with such an event would be fatal in most of the patients that would be receiving the device. I highly doubt that they could ever receive approval for the battery with these facts being known.

Re:Lithium?

[general_re]

Considering that pacemakers have been powered by lithium batteries for nearly thirty years now, I suspect that the lithium content of any new battery will hardly be a dealbreaker.

Misleading story

[Dan East]

Once again we see a story that is misleading, probably in an attempt to simply get accepted by the Slashdot editors.

The battery has a lifetime of 12 years, meaning that it can be discharged and charged enough times to last for 12 years before it needs to be replaced. In similar terms, my notebook battery lasts around 2 years. After 2 years of normal use the battery's capacity has been reduced to the point I need a new one.

Dan East