Researchers at MIT (the renowned Massachusetts Institute of Technology) in the U.S., say they have found a way to combine cement and carbon black (a fine black powder carbon that is used in the manufacturing of many products, including tyres) with water to create a supercapacitor (a device that can store electrical energy and release and accept it extremely quickly).
An article published by MIT News (read the full article HERE) indicates that the trick to turning cement into a supercapacitor lies in the use of the carbon black which, the MIT team says, is highly conductive and when mixed in with cement and water, naturally settles into the branch-like network of openings that are left when the water reacts with the cement. When the resulting material is then soaked in an electrolyte, charged particles accumulate on the carbon.
The MIT researchers say this supercapacitor material could be used in all manner of useful ways in a future where energy storage is becoming extremely important. For example, a home that uses the material for its foundation could, researchers said, have the capacity to store 10kWh of energy – enough to cover the average daily electricity usage for a household.
Roads too, could be constructed using the material, store energy – perhaps supplied by solar power – and then transfer it to vehicles via wireless charging.
Other methods of building roads that can charge vehicles have been developed. In 2021, the Indiana Dept of Transportation in the US announced it was initiating a project to develop a segment of highway that would wirelessly charge an EV using magnetisable concrete developed by German company Magment. In Sweden, several years of testing culminated this year in the announcement that the nation would build a permanent electric road on the 28km stretch between the city of Orebro and the town of Hallsberg.
Three types of ‘electric road’ technologies, including inductive charging, are being considered.
Source: Motor Trader e-Magazine (August 2023)
19 August 2023