New car battery promises instant recharging
Exciting news in an article from Mail & Guardian. The Ifbattery has been developed by a group of researchers at Purdue University in the United States.
Unlike conventional batteries which need to be recharged, and even the quickest car chargers take at least 20 minutes to get a meaningful charge, recharging of the Ifbattery is done by first emptying the batteries used fluid contents and then refilling via a pump with freshly charged fluid.
The Ifbattery uses a mixture of water, ethanol, aluminium and zinc to cause a chemical reaction. The article says that existing petrol pumps could be retrofitted to refill batteries instead of petrol and diesel tanks. The emptied contents of the flat battery could also be recharged to be used again.
If this technology comes to fruition it would mean that recharging an electric car would take no longer than filling up with petrol. Unlike fossil fuels though, the chemical mixture being used will be fully recyclable and will be recharged and used to fill another battery. It appears to have all the benefits of an electric vehicle with all the benefits of an ICE vehicle. It's also something that gives the oil companies an incentive to get behind electric vehicles. They will still be able to keep their chains of filling stations and instead of pumping gas they'll be pumping battery fluid. Everyone appears to be a winner.
This technology would really be a benefit to countries like South Africa where major cities are far apart and at the moment there are very few charging points and as far as I know there are no charging stations on the major intercity routes.
The group of researchers working on this revolutionary battery at the moment only amounts to three people. They are looking for funding to further their research. Hopefully this won't be the last we hear of the Ifbattery.
Exciting news in an article from Mail & Guardian. The Ifbattery has been developed by a group of researchers at Purdue University in the United States.
Unlike conventional batteries which need to be recharged, and even the quickest car chargers take at least 20 minutes to get a meaningful charge, recharging of the Ifbattery is done by first emptying the batteries used fluid contents and then refilling via a pump with freshly charged fluid.
The Ifbattery uses a mixture of water, ethanol, aluminium and zinc to cause a chemical reaction. The article says that existing petrol pumps could be retrofitted to refill batteries instead of petrol and diesel tanks. The emptied contents of the flat battery could also be recharged to be used again.If this technology comes to fruition it would mean that recharging an electric car would take no longer than filling up with petrol. Unlike fossil fuels though, the chemical mixture being used will be fully recyclable and will be recharged and used to fill another battery. It appears to have all the benefits of an electric vehicle with all the benefits of an ICE vehicle. It's also something that gives the oil companies an incentive to get behind electric vehicles. They will still be able to keep their chains of filling stations and instead of pumping gas they'll be pumping battery fluid. Everyone appears to be a winner.
This technology would really be a benefit to countries like South Africa where major cities are far apart and at the moment there are very few charging points and as far as I know there are no charging stations on the major intercity routes.
The group of researchers working on this revolutionary battery at the moment only amounts to three people. They are looking for funding to further their research. Hopefully this won't be the last we hear of the Ifbattery.
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