WASHINGTON (TIP): Scientists have developed a new biodegradable battery that runs on sugar and can work for long hours without charging. In as soon as three years, the new battery could be running some of the cell phones, tablets, video games, and the myriad other electronic gadgets that require power, researchers said. The battery developed by a Virginia Tech research team has an unmatched energy density, a development that could replace conventional batteries with ones that are cheaper, refillable, and biodegradable.

While other sugar batteries have been developed, this one has an energy density an order of magnitude higher than others, allowing it to run longer before needing to be refuelled, Y H Percival Zhang, an associate professor of biological systems engineering in the College of A griculture and Life Sciences and College of Engineering, said.