Korean team designs graphene-based transparent flexible battery | Hacker News Reader

Korean team designs graphene-based transparent flexible battery

graphene-info.com

Graphene-Info.com is a shill page offering networking and promotion services to the nascent "graphene industry". The Korean team's work, while interesting on the basis of pure science, has no indication of ever being practical or marketable. They haven't even bothered applying for a patent.

Some perspective: over the past 5-6 years, I have seen a raft of companies pop up promising better batteries. Their business plans are all fairly similar, but none really succeed (that I have seen); most are treading water, and few have produced returns. It seems breaking into the battery market is very difficult. Glass batteries, AC batteries, cheap graphene from biomass, silicon anodes, none have really succeeded, yet. Maybe a move to intermittent energy sources (e.g. wind, solar, hydro) which require batteries and transmission will drive adoption of new technology. If I were to guess, it will be a shortage of lithium, nickel, cobalt, etc.

Thanks for sharing. Seems you are knowledgeable about the industry. Any views on companies, or technologies, that you consider promising?

Is there any source for a better quality larger photo? Would love to actually see how this looks like...

Try this http://www.hankookilbo.com/News/Read/201904231788312607

thank you! this is pretty amazing to see. i suspect lithium ionization will prevail a while longer but it’s good to see some radical pragmatic application of any potential alternatives!

So the implication is transparent phones?

No, it is still hard to hide the other electronics. But self driving cars will be powered by the windscreen.

phones don’t really have a design problem that can be solved with transparency other than a gimmick.

However being able to integrate the battery and the display into the same structural element opens design options for other applications e.g. smart glasses.

It also can be used for other applications such as say UV/IR spectrum solar panels with the battery integrated into them which could be made into a drop in window or structural glass for architecture or for automotive applications for example.

Almost none of the recent changes in phones have been real problems. Gimmicks sell phones.

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