NantEnergy Chairman Patrick Soon-Shiong with his company’s rechargeable zinc-air battery cell.
Credit: Calvin B. Alagot / Los Angeles Times
Remote villages in Africa and Asia are receiving electricity using a little-known type of technology: zinc-air batteries.
The goal is to provide a battery that can capture renewable energy and store it for later use.
El Segundo-based NantEnergy announced Wednesday that it has created a rechargeable zinc-air battery storage system that can provide power at a lower cost than lithium-ion batteries.
The technology has been deployed in more than 110 villages serving 200,000 people who have no other access to electricity in their communities, said NantEnergy Chairman Patrick Soon-Shiong, who also is the owner of the Los Angeles Times.
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Since the Zinc-Air battery separates zinc and oxygen gases from zinc oxcide, isn’t the zinc gas toxic? For example, if you were to use a welding torch to cut through galvanized steel it releases a toxic zinc gas.