STANFORD, Calif., Dec. 9 (UPI) -- U.S. scientists say they have combined ordinary paper dipped into ink infused with carbon nanotubes and silver nanowires to create an instant battery.
Stanford University post doctoral students led by Assistant Professor Yi Cui said the paper batteries are ultra-lightweight and bendable.
"Society really needs a low-cost, high-performance energy storage device, such as batteries and simple supercapacitors," Cui said.
Capacitors are similar to batteries, holding an electric charge, but for a shorter period of time. However, capacitors can store and discharge electricity much more rapidly than a battery.
"These nanomaterials are special," Cui said. "They're a one-dimensional structure with very small diameters." He said the small diameter helps the nanomaterial ink stick strongly to the fibrous paper, making the battery and supercapacitor very durable.
Cui said the paper supercapacitor may last through 40,000 charge-discharge cycles -- at least an order of magnitude more than lithium batteries. The nanomaterials also make ideal conductors because they move electricity along much more efficiently than ordinary conductors, Cui said.
He also noted the flexibility of paper allows for many clever applications. "If I want to paint my wall with a conducting energy storage device," Cui said, "I can use a brush."
Cui, Bing Hu, Liangbing Hu, JangWook Choi and Yuan Yang report their work in the early online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
