Eggshell can be used as lithium battery material

Eggs are rich in nutrients, and eggshells can also be used as rubber additives, carbon capture media and bioplastics. However, recently the team from Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) in Germany has discovered new uses for eggshells.

The Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) is known as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Germany, and the Helmholtz Ulm Institute (HIU) established by KIT Scientists pointed out that the egg shell is composed of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) and protein-rich fiber membranes. Calcium carbonate can be used to store lithium ions and is quite suitable for use in lithium battery anodes.

Professor Maximilian Fichtner of HIU said that it is surprising that there are constantly new examples showing that natural substances are very suitable for use in electrochemical energy storage systems.

Fichtner and colleagues from Australia jointly discovered this electrochemical property of egg shells. They washed the eggshells and mashed them into fine powder, and then applied the powder to a lithium anode using a non-aqueous electrolyte. The test found that this new type of battery can still maintain 92% of its capacity after 1,000 cycles of charging and discharging, and its electrochemical performance is the same as the activated carbon materials on the market.

So far, this is the first time in the world that biological waste has been used as an electrode. The researchers said that further research and detailed understanding of the electrochemical and physical properties of materials are needed in the future to improve performance and expand the scope of applications.