World’s first practical dissolvable battery developed

BBC : Dissolvable batteries have been a goal of researchers for years because of the potential to reduce electronic waste and perhaps operate inside the human body. Now Reza Montazami of Iowa State University in Ames and his colleagues have developed what they say is the first practical, dissolvable lithium-ion battery. The 2.5 V battery is 5 mm × 1 mm × 6 mm and houses the electrodes and electrolyte between two layers of a polyvinyl alcohol-based polymer. When exposed to water, the casing swells and the electrodes break apart; the full process takes around 30 minutes. Scaling the battery up is possible, but the cell would take longer to dissolve. Montazami’s team suggests the battery could be used for powering environmental monitoring devices. The lithium-ion chemistry, however, is not suitable for use in the body.