Podcast: Play in new window
BOB HIRSHON (host):
Building better batteries. I’m Bob Hirshon and this is Science Update.
Lithium ion batteries are used in everything from cell phones to electric cars. In the journal Advanced Energy Materials, researchers at Northwestern University report improvements that allow the batteries to hold their charge ten times longer, and recharge ten times faster. The team created battery electrodes made of thin sheets of carbon and silicon, which can hold more lithium ions and also allow them to travel faster through the battery.
In other news, scientists at the University of Southhampton in England have come up with a new twist on pressure washers that clean with powerful jets of water. Their ultrasonic nozzle adds tiny bubbles and ultrasound to the water, allowing it to clean everything from circuit boards to sewage systems with a tenth of the water and a tenth of the energy used by regular scrubbers. I’m Bob Hirshon, for AAAS, the science society.
