If researchers at St. Louis University in Missouri get their way, your electronic gadgets could be guzzling Coca-Cola for power.

They’ve given a whole new meaning to juicing up your devices by developing a battery that runs on sugar. Yup, you read that right - sugar. SLU researchers have “developed a fuel cell battery that runs on virtually any sugar source — from soft drinks to tree sap — and has the potential to operate three to four times longer on a single charge than conventional lithium ion batteries”

I’m not kidding - you can read this article from PhysOrg.com for the rest of the details. If you want the condensed version, read on.

The basic premise is this: our bodies operate on sugar - why not electronics? Study leader Shelley Minteer, Ph.D., an electrochemist at Saint Louis University, claims that “by bridging biology and chemistry, we can build a better battery that’s also cleaner for the environment.”

What they’ve developed is a fuel cell containing enzymes that convert sugar into electricity, leaving behind water as a main byproduct. As proof of concept, a prototype of the battery roughly the size of a postage stamp was used to operate a handheld calculator.

Does this mean we’ll soon be pouring Coke into our laptops, cameras, and music players? Probably not. Tests with carbonated beverages have shown that carbonation weakens the fuel cell. We’ll have to wait until our sodas go flat.

Then again, we have to wait until these cells come out on the market. Based on Minteer’s estimates, that could happen in the next three to five years.

via Engadget
image by Stitch

Tags: sugar fuel cell, physorg.com, St. Louis University, Missouri, Coke, Coca-Cola, electronics