Rechargeable Concrete Battery

A rechargeable cement-based battery was developed, with an average energy density of 7 Wh/m2 (or 0.8 Wh/L) during six charge/discharge cycles. Iron (Fe) and zinc (Zn) were selected as anodes, and nickel-based (Ni) oxides as cathodes. The conductivity of cement-based electrolytes was modified by adding short carbon fibers (CF). The cement-based electrodes were produced by two methods: powder-mixing and metal-coating. Different combinations of cells were tested. The results showed that the best performance of the rechargeable battery was the Ni–Fe battery, produced by the metal-coating method.