Nuclear waste powered battery produces thousands of years of clean energy

Nuclear power is often hailed as a clean energy source due to its zero carbon dioxide emissions. However, it also generates significant amounts of hazardous, radioactive waste. As the number of reactors around the world increases, so does the accumulation of this waste, posing a serious challenge.

Addressing this issue is crucial for both environmental protection and public health. Without sufficient safe storage space, experts have proposed various solutions, focusing particularly on reutilizing the materials.

One promising development in this area is the radioactive diamond battery, first introduced in 2016. This innovative technology offers a potential method for recycling nuclear waste in a cost-effective manner, raising the question: could these batteries be the ultimate solution to managing toxic radioactive residues?

Radioactive diamond batteries were developed by a team of physicists and chemists at the University of Bristol’s Cabot Institute for the Environment. These batteries are a type of betavoltaic device, powered by the beta decay of nuclear waste.

Beta decay occurs when an unstable atomic nucleus releases excess particles, achieving a more stable ratio of protons to neutrons. This process produces beta radiation, characterized by high-speed and high-energy electrons or positrons, known as beta particles. These beta particles can be converted into electric energy through a semiconductor.

In a typical betavoltaic cell, thin layers of radioactive material are placed between semiconductors. As the radioactive material decays, it emits beta particles that dislodge electrons in the semiconductor, creating an electric current.

However, the efficiency of these batteries is limited. The power density decreases with distance from the semiconductor, and because beta particles are emitted randomly in all directions, only a small fraction hit the semiconductor and convert to electricity.

This is where polycrystalline diamond (PCD) comes into play. The batteries are manufactured using chemical vapor deposition (CVD), a process also used for creating artificial diamonds. By modifying the CVD process to incorporate radioactive methane containing Carbon-14, a radioactive isotope found in irradiated reactor graphite blocks, researchers created radioactive diamonds.

Diamond, being one of the hardest known materials and an excellent semiconductor, can produce a long-duration battery that self-charges using the nuclear waste inside it.

However, these batteries contain only 1 gram of Carbon-14, providing very low power output—just a few microwatts, less than a typical AA battery. Thus, their applications are currently limited to small devices requiring long-term, unattended operation, such as sensors and pacemakers.

The concept of nuclear batteries dates back to 1913 when English physicist Henry Moseley discovered that particle radiation could generate an electric current. The aerospace industry in the 1950s and 1960s saw the potential for powering spacecraft on long missions. The RCA Corporation also explored using nuclear batteries in radio receivers and hearing aids.

The development of synthetic diamonds marked a significant advancement in this technology, offering both safety and conductivity. Combining this with nanotechnology, NDB Inc., an American company founded in 2012, created a high-power nano-diamond battery.

This startup, based in San Francisco, aims to provide a cleaner and greener alternative to conventional batteries. NDB introduced its version of diamond-based batteries in 2016 and conducted two proof-of-concept tests in 2020.

According to NDB, their nano-diamond batteries feature several innovative characteristics:

Durability: These batteries could last up to 28,000 years, making them ideal for powering space vehicles on long missions, space stations, and satellites. On Earth, they could be used in drones, electric cars, and aircraft, eliminating the need for frequent recharging.

Safety: Diamond's hardness and high thermal conductivity protect against the heat generated by the radioisotopes within the battery, quickly converting it to electric current.

Versatility: The thin-film layers of PCD allow for various shapes and forms, making these batteries suitable for a wide range of applications, from space technology to consumer electronics. However, the consumer version of these batteries is expected to last no more than a decade.

NDB plans to bring these nano-diamond batteries to the market in 2023. Similarly, Arkenlight, a company commercializing Bristol’s radioactive diamond battery, aims to release its first product, a microbattery, by the end of 2023.

With the increasing demand for portable electronic devices, electric vehicles, and long-duration space missions, battery technology research has gained significant momentum. While some types of batteries are more suitable for specific applications, conventional lithium-ion batteries are unlikely to be replaced by radioactive diamond batteries in the near future.

Conventional batteries, though cheaper to produce, have a shorter lifespan of about five years, contributing to electronic waste, which is challenging to recycle. In contrast, radioactive diamond batteries offer a much longer lifespan.

If developed into a universal battery, as proposed by NDB Inc., they could revolutionize the industry. For instance, smartphone batteries could outlast the devices themselves, allowing users to transfer the battery from one phone to another, similar to how SIM cards are transferred today.

However, the diamond betavoltaics developed by Arkenlight are not yet ready to reach this stage. The company is working on designs that stack multiple Carbon-14 betabatteries into cells, potentially paired with small supercapacitors for quick-discharge capability.

Despite the challenges, the long lifespan of the radioactive material (over 5,000 years) and the solid state of C-14 in diamond form ensure safety by preventing radiation leaks.

The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) estimated that 100 pounds (approximately 45 kg) of Carbon-14 could produce millions of long-duration diamond-based batteries, significantly reducing nuclear waste storage costs. Professor Tom Scott from the University of Bristol highlighted that removing Carbon-14 from irradiated graphite would make the remaining waste less radioactive and easier to manage.

He mentioned that disposal costs for graphite waste are 46,000 pounds ($60,000) per cubic meter for Intermediate Level Waste (ILW) and 3,000 pounds ($4,000) per cubic meter for Low-Level Waste (LLW).

The features of radioactive diamond batteries—durability, safety, and versatility—present them as a promising solution for a sustainable future. However, manufacturers must address production costs and low energy output to make these batteries a viable and accessible option for the market.

Note: Materials provided above by The Brighter Side of News. Content may be edited for style and length.

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