Jin Seong-hoon, a professor in the Department of Information Display at Kyunghee University, noted on the 6th that his research team has developed the world's first biodegradable disposable battery using coffee grounds.
Existing biodegradable electronic devices primarily used bio-polymers such as polylactic acid (PLA) and cellulose. However, biodegradable batteries generally faced issues with output and stability.
The research team drew attention to the fact that approximately 2 million tons of coffee grounds are emitted globally each day and most are discarded. They developed a biodegradable frame-type disposable battery by using magnesium alloy and molybdenum trioxide as electrodes, combined with a frame material processed from coffee grounds into a porous structure.
As a result, an eco-friendly structure that maintains high energy density while naturally decomposing within 60 days has been implemented through the combination of magnesium alloy and molybdenum trioxide electrodes. This can be immediately applied to environmental sensors, medical devices that are discarded after a certain usage cycle, and military information tags.
Professor Jin Seong-hoon emphasized, 'We have confirmed the practical potential to convert coffee grounds that are easily discarded in daily life into energy storage devices for sustainable electronic goods,' and noted that 'this technology can be applied in various fields, including environmental sensors, medical implants, and security disposable devices.'
This research achievement was published on the 7th in the international journal 'Advanced Materials Technologies.'
References
Advanced Materials Technologies (2025), DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/admt.202570068