(June 17, 2015) To
move the world toward sustainability, scientists are continuing to explore and
improve ways to tap the vast power of sunlight to make fuels and generate
electricity. Now they have come up with a brand-new way to use light — solar or
artificial — to drive battery power safely. Their “photo battery,” reported in
ACS’ The Journal of Physical Chemistry C, uses light and titanium nitride for
the anode.
Metal-ion batteries such as those based on lithium ions run
most of our gadgets. But they take a long time to charge. They can also
overheat and catch fire if they’re defective or damaged. These problems are
often related to the unstable material used for the anode, the negative side of
the battery. Musthafa Ottakam Thotiyl and colleagues wanted to address these
flaws in a unique way.