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The race to commercialise nuclear-powered batteries

Chemistry World
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85% Informative

Micronuclear devices harness the energy released during the natural decay of radioactive isotopes, but are much smaller than any nuclear reactor.

In general, nuclear batteries produce just microwatts or nanowatts of electricity.

However, this small yet reliable energy output still makes them suitable for certain applications like powering sensors, especially under extreme temperatures or in locations with no available sunlight.

Tritium ’s half -life of around 12 years gives City Labs ’ batteries a lifetime of at least 20 years .

Betavolt in China announced a battery based on the beta-emitting radioisotope nickel-63 and a diamond semiconductor, which it said would be the first mass-produced nuclear battery.

Meanwhile, a group at the University of Bristol , UK , is extracting carbon-14 isotopes from irradiated graphite from former nuclear power plants.