The trouble with processors these days is that everyone wants power, but the problem with that is that the more power they pack, the more heat they build up and that is a problem design engineers are faced with every day. As demand for smaller components increases, companies are finding it difficult to shrink technology without having a build up of heat constantly. However, both IBM and ETH Zurich may be on to something regarding finding a suitable solution, and the idea is based on the battery.
A “flow battery” was created by scientists that stores charge by using electrolytes dissolved in two liquids. An arrangement was development by the researchers that allowed the battery to provide power as well as become a medium for dissipating heat that’s been generated by the processor. And, as well as being good at both cooling and powering they pack a record punch too by providing 1.4 watts of power per square centimeter.
While flow batteries aren’t a new technology the way in which this one’s implemented is. Normally they’re used in large scale operations to store massive amounts of power over long periods of time. Just recently another research team designed a way in which to use neutral water for transporting dissolved electrolytes in order to give the batteries an extended life.
“We are the first scientists to build such a small flow battery so as to combine energy supply and cooling,” stated Julian Marschewski, a doctoral student at ETH Zurich. And so the battery race continues….
Related Links;
- 3D-printed fluidic networks for high-power-density heat-managing miniaturized redox flow batteries / Royal Society of Chemistry
- Scientists have built a tiny battery that provides power and cooling at the same time / BGR
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