Algae-Based Technology Could Offer an Alternative to Batteries

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Una publicación compartida por BE OPEN Foundation (@beopenfuture)

Disposable batteries can inflict a lot of harm to the environment. This has to do with the dangerous materials they contain, which later leak into the soil and water once their metal casings break down. They aren’t exactly cheap either, especially for those in developing economies. To combat the harmful disposal of batteries, researchers at the University of Cambridge have come up with an environmentally friendly alternative to regular batteries based on one element found widely in nature—algae.

The team is harvesting the naturally occurring electricity during photosynthesis in blue-green algae. “We’ve found a way to tap into a natural process in algae, and use it to generate continuous electricity 24/7 without harming the plant at all,” says Dr. Paolo Bombelli from University of Cambridge’s Department of Biochemistry, the scientific lead of this project.

The idea draws from the algae being “photosynthetic cyanobacteria,” which means that they take carbon dioxide out of the air and harness sunlight to fuel their development. This “biocell” can produce energy for as long as it is alive. The researchers aim to tap into the flow of electrons that make this happen to power small electrical devices, like remote controls, smoke alarms, and alarm clocks.

“Our aim is to get rid of the need for batteries altogether,” says Bombelli. “This is a completely new way to generate electricity that has the capacity to run and run—even when there’s no light at all—making it a much greener, longer-term alternative to traditional chemical batteries.”

To turn this concept into a reality that can be scaled up and commercialized, the team brought on bio-designer Lucia Giron, whose background is in art and design. “One of the interesting tensions with designing a biocell is that you’re trying to create something that behaves like a piece of technology while also accommodating a living organism—in other words, designing the conditions for the organism to interact with the device,” she told Dezeen.

Giron has conceived an alarm clock powered by a stylish clear box that houses the algae, as well as a temperature sensor interface and a demonstrator cell. “The algae need access to light in order to photosynthesize,” Giron explains. “The transparency [also] allows people to see the living system inside, which hopefully creates a sense of curiosity and connection with the process happening within the cell.”

While this technology has over two decades of research behind it, it is still in a somewhat early stage. In the coming years, the scientists hope to be able to scale it up, as it can benefit rural off-grid locations in the form of charging facilities for phones and environmental sensors, like the ones that monitor water quality.

“Our technology could replace millions of small disposable batteries with a much a cleaner source of energy—that’s a huge environmental benefit and a really exciting prospect,” says Professor Chris Howe, principal investigator of the project in the Department of Biochemistry. “There are so many potential applications.”