Nuclear Batteries Are In Development By Recycling Radioactive Waste

Humans have been able to harness nuclear energy for decades now, allowing the creation of portable nuclear cores for ships and submarines, and building nuclear power plants to supply near limitless energy to communities. However, one of the things that futurists have been looking forward to is the creation of miniature energy storage units that can hold nuclear power. Not only has that technology been developed, it even has the potential to make nuclear power sustainable by recycling radioactive waste.

The technology was created by researchers at the University of Bristol, Phys.org reports, which is a team made up of physicists and chemists. The technology is grounded in the creation of a manmade diamond, which is able to generate an electric current once placed inside a field of high radiation. For those who know anything about energy generation, this basically makes the diamond an essential component to the development of a nuclear battery.

The findings were presented during the 'Ideas to change the world' conference held at the Cabot Institute on November 25th. The lecture was a sold-out event, featuring scientific innovations that have the potential for groundbreaking advancements for the next generation.

During the lecture involving the nuclear battery concept, one of the biggest points emphasized was the lack of complicated structures when it came to generating power. As Professor in Materials Tom Scott, at the Interface Analysis Centre of the University pointed out, all that’s really needed to draw power from nuclear waste was to place the diamond inside its field of radiation.

“There are no moving parts involved, no emissions generated and no maintenance required, just direct electricity generation,” Scot said. “By encapsulating radioactive material inside diamonds, we turn a long-term problem of nuclear waste into a nuclear-powered battery and a long-term supply of clean energy."

The team behind the discovery has actually already created a prototype unit of the future generation of “diamond batteries” using the Nickel-63 material as the source of radiation. The prototype exhibited great potential, but the researchers are already working on the next versions.