The scarcity and rising price of lithium, the main component of smartphone batteries and other consumer electronics, means: looking for replacement material is more urgent than ever. And who would tell us that the solution could be through a carbohydrate found in crabs and other mollusks, among others?

About chitin polymer, found in the mollusks mentioned above, but also in fungi, insects or yeast. It may be the best substitute for lithium, as a University of Maryland study reveals. Yet, as we warned long ago, it’s not the only one.

Silicon, carbon, calcium, sulfur and now chitin says goodbye to lithium

Just a few months ago, we met Honor Magic5 Pro, Honor’s newest flagship that comes with unique features. a new component for the battery. Or rather two, because it is a mixture of silicon and carbon. And these materials provide many advantages regarding cost, durability, energy efficiency and even offer the possibility to add larger capacity displays in less space.

Talking this year replace lithium-ion batteries with calcium and sulfur. They have not yet been translated into a device, as in the previous case, but there are studies supporting its implementation. In addition, they will alleviate the weak points of lithium batteries, although they also involve certain fire risks and a greater environmental impact than previous batteries.

Now a third combination of materials for batteries appears in the hands of the kit. This carbohydrate It will be combined with zinc to obtain properties that act as suitable elements for batteries.. And in this case, as you can see, it will bring with it many advantages.

Chitin is found in fungi, mollusks, and insects.

Character biodegradable This material combination, which takes less than half a year to decompose, looks very attractive when compared to the highly polluting effect of lithium. But there are also advantages when it comes to the correct use of batteries. Over 400 hours of use application on smartphones.

Again, still far from being considered as a real alternative.. And obtaining chitin seems much more complicated, although its abundance is exceeded only by cellulose. In the absence of studies that more accurately show its feasibility, it seems like a rough road if you want to meet the exorbitant demand that would require being applied to the batteries of products like cell phones.

In any case, in the end this is still another proof. Seeking alternatives to what is currently presented as a problem with lithium today. We also learned of a study a few months ago where some young students developed a prototype of a battery that could last up to 200,000 charge cycles. So let science progress.

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