“Back to the future” serves as inspiration for clothing with a solar-powered battery

Jayan Thomas, an associate professor at the University of Central Florida (UCF), and his team have developed a new technology inspired by the movie “Back to the Future Part II.” They have created garments that can act as solar-powered batteries, eliminating the need for external charging.

The technology involves a ribbon-like device capable of harvesting light, converting it into electricity, and storing the energy. It combines a perovskite solar cell with a supercapacitor through a copper ribbon, which serves as a shared electrode for direct charge transfer.

Supercapacitors have been considered a potential alternative to batteries due to their ability to release energy quickly and recharge rapidly. However, they have lacked the energy density to store large amounts of energy over extended periods. Thomas and his team’s research achieved a 10% energy conversion ratio for the flexible solar ribbon and a specific capacitance of 1193 farads per gram (F/g) for the supercapacitor. While this energy storage capability is superior to traditional supercapacitors, it still falls short compared to chemical-based batteries.

The researchers demonstrated the technology by weaving filaments from the ribbon into a square of yarn. The potential applications are significant, particularly for the military, where soldiers often carry heavy batteries in hostile environments. Thomas believes that the solar-powered garments could reduce the load on soldiers by acting as a hybrid battery-supercapacitor device.

Currently, the technology is not optimized for the highest energy and power density, but the researchers are working on improving it. They hope to create a more efficient hybrid system that can power essential devices, such as radios, for extended periods without the need for bulky batteries.