Operating without recharging for 100 years, this carbon -14 nuclear battery could change the way we design the power supply. Its objective: to provide miniature, sustainable and reliable energy to devices capable of operating a whole life without human intervention.
Use the slow carbon-14 disintegration to produce energy on several millennia
After the BV100 de BetaVolt, which promised 50 years of autonomy, China doubles the bet with the Zhulong‑1. Developed by the laboratory Northwest Normal Universitythis miniature battery would work continuously for a century Without notable power loss.
The secret lies in the slow disintegration of carbon -14. This radioactive isotope frees up a small amount of energy, converted into electricity by an envelope in silicon carbide. This shell plays two roles: it transforms radiation into current and completely borders them. Sono radioactive leaks occur.
What’s morethis technology would offer an energy density ten times higher to that of a classic lithium – ion battery. Its half -life is 5 730 answhich explains why, in theory, it could feed a device for several millennia.
Design a stable battery of -100 to +200 ° C and at the minimum degradation rate
Researchers assure that the Zhulong‑1 would remain stable in a temperature range from -100 to +200 ° C. Furthermoreits degradation rate would be lower than 5 % over 50 years. At the end of life, the residual material would become harmlesswhich would strongly limit the environmental impact.
However, the power delivered remains very weak : They L’Adre you nanowatt. That’s whyIt will not be able to supply an electric vehicle or a computer.
On the other handit is ideal for low -consumption devices that must work without interruption for decades .
Researchers notably cite heart stimulators: An implant equipped with this battery could work all the life of the patient, against about fifteen years today. It could also be used for industrial sensors placed in inaccessible areas.
Work on a smaller, cheaper zhulong-2 adapted to medical, industrial and spatial uses
The Chinese team already develops Zhulong‑2the size of a coin. She would be less expensiveto be produced and easier to integrate into various systems.
So beyond medicine and industry, these batteries could also supply satellites . Their exceptional longevity would help maintain instruments in service throughout the mission, even in the solar system regions where solar energy is insufficient.
For the moment, Only China has industrial capacities to produce carbon -14 in sufficient quantity. It gives him a strategic advanceOn the rest of the world in this area.
This breakthrough does not promise eternal smartphones or endless electric cars, but it opens the way to Ultra -Durable Food SolutionsFor very specific uses. And if the future of energy started with such small devices … that we would almost forget that they work?
Source : Northwest Normal University, 2025
