An Electric Eel Battery May Power Micro-implants

Oxford University biochemists have harnessed the principal employed by electric eels to generate substantial supplies of electricity. This novel bio-battery uses a chain of nanoliter hydrogel bubbles each containing a different ion concentration to create a chemical gradient capable of generating tiny electrical currents. The bubble chains are created using a 3D printer and may be stacked together to generate requisite voltages. The electron flow is controlled by varying the thickness of the insulating lipid layer surrounding each bubble. As a proof-opf-concept, the investigators combined twenty chains of 5 droplets each and were able to generate the 2 volts necessary to successfully light an LED bulb. This type of bioelectric battery will someday power implantable drug delivery devices and wearable sensors.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-023-06295-y#Sec7

#electriceel #batteries #implantables #wearables #ionflux