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■以馬鈴薯製作的電池不但成本比傳統電池低，而且電力更強10倍。資料圖片
耶路撒冷希伯來大學的技術轉移公司表示，被煮熟的馬鈴薯可為發展中國家提供廉價電力。
伊薩姆研究發展公司指出，這些馬鈴薯只需1/5至1/50的成本，便可產生商用電池的能源。
伊薩姆公司行政總裁米希林說：「能製造出具效率的植物電池，令人類可以嶄新的方法駕馭生物能源。以這種簡單、自然的方法供電，能令發展中國家數以百萬計的人受惠，為這些缺乏電力基礎建設的地區帶來光明。」
以色列希伯來大學的拉比諾維奇和研究生戈爾貝格與加州大學柏克萊分校的魯賓斯基，聯手利用鋅電極、銅電極和一片普通的馬鈴薯，研發出更具效能的新款電池。
他們發現在進行電解作用前煮熟的馬鈴薯，可以增加電力10倍，而電池可運作幾天甚至幾周。研究的科學理據是與減低馬鈴薯電池內的內部鹽橋電阻有關，這亦是工程師希望改良傳統電池的重點。
全球共有130個遍布多個不同氣候區域的國家生產馬鈴薯；因此馬鈴薯一年四季都有供應。馬鈴薯是全球產量最高的非穀物類澱粉糧食，單在2007年便產出3.25億噸。發展中國家的馬鈴薯產量佔超過全球一半，而其食用量亦不斷增加。由於馬鈴薯容易種植，且熱量高，故成為全球數以百萬計農民的生財農作物。 ■路透社 ■羅國偉 資深翻譯員
Potato Batteries May Provide Cheaper Electricity with Stronger Power
An electric battery based on boiled potatoes could provide a cheap source of electricity in the developing world, according to the technology transfer company of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
The treated potato battery generates energy that is 5 to 50 times cheaper than commercially available batteries, Yissum Research Development Co. said.
"The ability to construct efficient vegetative batteries supplies us with a novel way of exploiting bio-energy sources. The ability to provide electrical power with such simple and natural means could benefit millions of people in the developing world, literally bringing light to their life in areas currently lacking electrical infrastructure," Yaacov Michlin, chief executive of Yissum said.
Haim Rabinowitch and research student Alex Golberg at Israel's Hebrew University jointly with Boris Rubinsky at the University of California at Berkeley discovered a new way to construct an efficient battery using zinc and copper electrodes and a slice of an ordinary potato.
They found that boiling the potato prior to use in electrolysis increased electric power up to 10-fold over the untreated potato and enabled the battery to work for days and weeks. The scientific basis of the finding is related to the reduction in the internal salt bridge resistance of the potato battery, which is exactly how engineers are trying to optimize the performance of conventional batteries.
Potatoes, produced in 130 countries over a wide range of climates and thus available year round are the world's number one non-grain starch food commodity, with production reaching a record 325 million tons in 2007. Potato consumption is expanding strongly in developing countries, which now account for more than half of the global harvest and where the potato's ease of cultivation and high energy content have made it a valuable cash crop for millions of farmers. ■Reuters
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