A new type of battery based on the radioactive decay of nuclear material is 10 times more powerful than similar prototypes and should last a decade or more without a charge, scientists announced this week. The longevity would make the battery ideal for use in pacemakers or other surgically implanted devices, developers say, or it might power spacecraft or deep-sea probes. You might also find these nuclear batteries running sensors and other small devices in your home in a few years. Such devices "don't consume much power," said University of Rochester electrical engineer Philippe Fauchet, "and yet having to replace the battery every so often is a real pain in the neck." Fauchet told LiveScience the batteries could last a dozen years. They're being developed at Rochester and the technology has been licensed by BetaBatt Inc. >> How It Works
This is a significant advancement. Now all they need to do is: 1) Never call it a "nuclear" battery again. People just don't understand that word. (This is why NMRI - "Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Imaging" banished the "N" to the broom closet.) 2) Pressure congress to change the US's overly paranoid laws controlling the importation and use of tritium. Honestly, how many of us have the capability (or volition) of using a British keyring light to tritiate weapons-grade plutonium? For that matter, how many of us have weapons-grade plutonium on hand? Yea, science!
The idea has been around for about 50 years, and indeed there are about 200 lighthouses dotted along the Russian coastline powered by such devices: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RTG http://www.bellona.no/en/international/rus...tion/28067.html The problem with any radioactive source is two-fold: the issue of personal safety and the issue of potentially lethal sources of radioactive material for a "dirty" bomb.
Jeff: I tried that with my Acme Disintegrating Ray Gun, but somehow it ended up disintegrating my Disintegrating Ray Gun. Oh, wait a minute. I was supposed to put a FUSE in the circuit. DOI! Jay
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(jayman\";p=\"89690)</div> I would normally also add disposal of spent materials (batteries?); I assume the same would be true here. (In large enough quantities.) :lolup: Jay, I appreciate someone who remembers old Looney Toons routines. (And Duck Dodgers in the 25th 1/2 Century is one of the best.)
Marvin the Martian was one of my favs. Too bad they did so little with him. "Oohhhh, you have made me very angry, very angry indeed!!!" "Where's the Kaboom? There was supposed to be an earth shattering kaboom!!!"
Jeff: <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(bookrats\";p=\"89723)</div> Geez leave it to me to forget the most important part! It's bad enough that our landfills are littered with zillions of AA alkaline batteries, imagine radioactive AA-sized cells in there too. <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(bookrats\";p=\"89723)</div> Sadly, it also reflects my age. Am I getting old or what? Jay
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Wolfman\";p=\"89736)</div> Wolfy: Truly one of the most classic of lines. Jay
Marvin was never "pulled" for any racial insensitivities. Neither was Speedy Gonzalez. Both still get airplay on Boomerang. They simply were not major characters, and not used in very many storylines in the Warner Brothers 'toons.
