But what does hemp have to do with electric batteries?
Hemp has been chosen as one of the main materials for its durability, its porosity and its low costs.
Among the first approaches to the use of material of plant origin for technological development, we have the one of engineer David Mitlin of the University of Albertasi, which focused on the creation of a nanomaterial derived from the scraps of the industrial processing of hemp. This was of great effect because the yield of vegetable waste was found to have properties similar to graphene, but with a lower cost.
In fact, it was discovered that hemp could be transformed into nanosheets, then electrodes in thin sheets with large exposed surface and high capacity for transport and energy conservation. From this discovery, however, there were no actual concrete developments.
Other approaches, based on Mitlin’s first discovery, have recently developed in Texas.
The information released say things about an alternative battery to that of lithium ion (Li-ion), with a technology developed for lithium sulfur batteries (lis) called B4C-hemp, abbreviation of "boron carbide obtained from hemp".
The prototypes of the lis/B4C-hemp technology, according to the inventors (Bemp Corp), could offer significant advantages in terms of cost, weight, scalability, performance and recyclability. However, hemp batteries present problems such as the contraction/expansion of the cathode during charging/discharging and the passage of cathode polysulfides to the anode, which impairs its performance.
So we are talking about a technology that guarantees a very high level of environmental protection, but it still needs to be studied.
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