The first Nuclear Power Bank for smartphones is now available on worldwide markets.
Betavolt, a Chinese company, announced last January a revolutionary technology for long-lasting nuclear powered batteries, which are now available on the online company’s shop. They claim their Betavolt Powerbank (BV100) can last 50 years and has sufficient power density for charging not only low consumption sensors, as many critics claim, but also energivorous smartphones. The product is not new in its concept, as nuclear batteries are used in spacecrafts, underwater systems, and remote scientific stations by USA and Russia. They capture thermal energy from radioactive decay and transform it into electricity. Betavolt claims BV100 is completely different, since the innovation is in the process: the battery is reportedly able to efficiently capture electrons straight from nuclear decay, with a technology called “Betavoltaic generation”. Instead of tapping thermal energy, it captures the ejected electrons, known as beta particles, from a radioactive isotope of nickel to form an electric circuit.
Skeptical comments from US based universities and magazines were not long in coming. Doubts on its power density and capacity, as well as on nuclear safety, have been raised. Is Betavoltaic generation in the tiny battery proposed really able to capture and store sufficient power for modern smartphones (3V, as declared by the manufacturer)? Are consumers ready to walk about their daily lives with a radioactive device in their pockets or palms? Most people would probably be strongly against it, safety guarantees notwithstanding.
In any case, solutions shall be found for safe disposal of mass produced nuclear batteries. Regulators are called to a difficult challenge, being current disposal and recycling strategies, e.g. RAEE, not applicable to the case. IIIrd parties’ independent tests and the market’s verdict will have the last word.
