High-energy virus based battery

[Aquila76]

http://www.cio.com/blog_view.html?CID=20029

Scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the United States have figured out a way to use viruses to build ultrathin lithium-ion batteries that pack three times the normal energy level for their weight and size, they said this week.

By manipulating genes inside the viruses, the scientists coaxed them into coating themselves with cobalt oxide molecules and gold particles and then lining themselves up to form tiny wires that serve as the anode electrode in a battery.

The only downside is: What would happen if the battery leaked and the virus escaped? :laugh:

EDIT:
Found some more links on this:

Boston Business Journal
ArsTechnica

According to the BBJ article, the battery could be as powerful as current batteries, but be the size of a grain of rice!

 

[Shawn]

Not all viruses are harmful to humans. Sounds cool.

 

[Aquila76]

Originally posted by: Shawn
Not all viruses are harmful to humans. Sounds cool.

That was kinda tounge in cheek. The main application would be for car batteries, I'd imagine. The batteries add a great deal of weight and take a lot of space in the hybrid / full electrics.

 

[Kelvrick]

Originally posted by: Aquila76

Originally posted by: Shawn
Not all viruses are harmful to humans. Sounds cool.

That was kinda tounge in cheek. The main application would be for car batteries, I'd imagine. The batteries add a great deal of weight and take a lot of space in the hybrid / full electrics.

They should become automated and even smaller, then soon we can swallow pills of them and they'll go around in our bodies eating the virii and then we'll fart out lightning bolts.

 

[Kelvrick]

Originally posted by: Aquila76

Originally posted by: Shawn
Not all viruses are harmful to humans. Sounds cool.

That was kinda tounge in cheek. The main application would be for car batteries, I'd imagine. The batteries add a great deal of weight and take a lot of space in the hybrid / full electrics.

They should become automated and even smaller, then soon we can swallow pills of them and they'll go around in our bodies eating the virii and then we'll fart out lightning bolts.

 

[swtethan]

man i would love a phone that has a talk time of 9 hours

 

[TitanDiddly]

Originally posted by: Aquila76

Originally posted by: Shawn
Not all viruses are harmful to humans. Sounds cool.

That was kinda tounge in cheek. The main application would be for car batteries, I'd imagine. The batteries add a great deal of weight and take a lot of space in the hybrid / full electrics.

What? Lithium is currently the lightest battery chemistry per Ah.

 

[SagaLore]

Originally posted by: Aquila76
The only downside is: What would happen if the battery leaked and the virus escaped? :laugh:

They would pull metals out of the earth and coat the entire planet, being charged by sunlight. Since only one side of Earth faces the sun, this coating will be polarized causing continuous electric flow around the planet as it revolves. The virus-grid will take on intelligence and begin building an infrastructure that creates circuits and data storage eventually becoming the most powerful computer in existence.

 

[FoBoT]

do you have to feed them?

 

[J0hnny]

Originally posted by: SagaLore

Originally posted by: Aquila76
The only downside is: What would happen if the battery leaked and the virus escaped? :laugh:

They would pull metals out of the earth and coat the entire planet, being charged by sunlight. Since only one side of Earth faces the sun, this coating will be polarized causing continuous electric flow around the planet as it revolves. The virus-grid will take on intelligence and begin building an infrastructure that creates circuits and data storage eventually becoming the most powerful computer in existence.

OMFG!

 

[J0hnny]

Originally posted by: FoBoT
do you have to feed them?

Wait, do viruses even eat? I thought all they did was replicate themselves.

 

[Mr.IncrediblyBored]

Originally posted by: TitanDiddly

Originally posted by: Aquila76

Originally posted by: Shawn
Not all viruses are harmful to humans. Sounds cool.

That was kinda tounge in cheek. The main application would be for car batteries, I'd imagine. The batteries add a great deal of weight and take a lot of space in the hybrid / full electrics.

What? Lithium is currently the lightest battery chemistry per Ah.

True, but hybrid car batteries aren't lithium ion.

 

[Aquila76]

Originally posted by: KnightBreed

Originally posted by: TitanDiddly

Originally posted by: Aquila76

Originally posted by: Shawn
Not all viruses are harmful to humans. Sounds cool.

That was kinda tounge in cheek. The main application would be for car batteries, I'd imagine. The batteries add a great deal of weight and take a lot of space in the hybrid / full electrics.

What? Lithium is currently the lightest battery chemistry per Ah.

True, but hybrid car batteries aren't lithium ion.

Beat me to it. I don't remember why they still use the lead-acid batteries, I think the lithium cells couldn't produce enough voltage / current or something.

 

[Aquila76]

Originally posted by: SagaLore

Originally posted by: Aquila76
The only downside is: What would happen if the battery leaked and the virus escaped? :laugh:

They would pull metals out of the earth and coat the entire planet, being charged by sunlight. Since only one side of Earth faces the sun, this coating will be polarized causing continuous electric flow around the planet as it revolves. The virus-grid will take on intelligence and begin building an infrastructure that creates circuits and data storage eventually becoming the most powerful computer in existence.

So THAT'S how the Borg got started!

 

[Mrfrog840]

i just want better batteries.... I need my laptop to at least last 16-20 hours on one charge....

 

[Mr.IncrediblyBored]

Originally posted by: Aquila76
Beat me to it. I don't remember why they still use the lead-acidbatteries, I think the lithium cells couldn't produce enough voltage / current or something.

Hybrids use nickel metal hydride (NiMH) batteries, not lead acid. The issue may just come down to cost. *shrug*

 

[Zenmervolt]

Originally posted by: Aquila76
Beat me to it. I don't remember why they still use the lead-acid batteries, I think the lithium cells couldn't produce enough voltage / current or something.

Because lead-acid batteries are still the best at handling many small discharge/recharge cycles. Even Li Ion batteries perform best when discharged fully before recharging. Lead-acid batteries are much more durable in automotive applications.

ZV

 

[mercanucaribe]

Originally posted by: Aquila76

Originally posted by: KnightBreed

Originally posted by: TitanDiddly

Originally posted by: Aquila76

Originally posted by: Shawn
Not all viruses are harmful to humans. Sounds cool.

That was kinda tounge in cheek. The main application would be for car batteries, I'd imagine. The batteries add a great deal of weight and take a lot of space in the hybrid / full electrics.

What? Lithium is currently the lightest battery chemistry per Ah.

True, but hybrid car batteries aren't lithium ion.

Beat me to it. I don't remember why they still use the lead-acid batteries, I think the lithium cells couldn't produce enough voltage / current or something.

Think about how expensive small lithium ion batteries are.

 

[ElFenix]

Originally posted by: KnightBreed
True, but hybrid car batteries aren't lithium ion.

i thought the ones in the escape hybrid were?

edit: oh NiMH


these should rock for phones and computers, though.

 

[Mr.IncrediblyBored]

Originally posted by: ElFenix

Originally posted by: KnightBreed
True, but hybrid car batteries aren't lithium ion.

i thought the ones in the escape hybrid were?

edit: oh NiMH

these should rock for phones and computers, though.

Yep, NiMH, see here. Mouse over the batter pack toward the back of the vehicle.

 

[radioouman]

Originally posted by: swtethan
man i would love a phone that has a talk time of 9 hours

Na, you'd end up with 3 hours still, but an ultra small battery.

 

[thehstrybean]

Originally posted by: Kelvrick

Originally posted by: Aquila76

Originally posted by: Shawn
Not all viruses are harmful to humans. Sounds cool.

That was kinda tounge in cheek. The main application would be for car batteries, I'd imagine. The batteries add a great deal of weight and take a lot of space in the hybrid / full electrics.

They should become automated and even smaller, then soon we can swallow pills of them and they'll go around in our bodies eating the virii and then we'll fart out lightning bolts.

I can already fart lightning...

 

[IGBT]

Originally posted by: Aquila76
http://www.cio.com/blog_view.html?CID=20029

Scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the United States have figured out a way to use viruses to build ultrathin lithium-ion batteries that pack three times the normal energy level for their weight and size, they said this week.

By manipulating genes inside the viruses, the scientists coaxed them into coating themselves with cobalt oxide molecules and gold particles and then lining themselves up to form tiny wires that serve as the anode electrode in a battery.

The only downside is: What would happen if the battery leaked and the virus escaped? :laugh:

..ya. what would happen?? Interesting article. we need more battery break throughs.

 

[ForumMaster]

Originally posted by: J0hnny

Originally posted by: FoBoT
do you have to feed them?

Wait, do viruses even eat? I thought all they did was replicate themselves.

ok. i won't turn this into a biology lesson, but their is a difference between viruses and bacteria. bacteria are living organisims that can replicate by themselves and produce thier own energy. viruses are not living organisims. they require a host cell to replicate themsleves. they can't replicate without a host cell. so food would not be an issue. and even though viruses have the tendency to do what we don't want them to do, if the scientists make them DNA viruses instead of RNA viruses, and make them unable to survive in the air, i don't think that it is such a risk. what many people don't know is that every human on this planet relies on many bacteria in the intestine that without them, we would die. only about 2% of all known bacteria cause disease. so i don't think infection is too high a risk.

 

[yhelothar]

That's amazing!