Eseosa Ekanem and Fatimah Sanni, Senior Engineers at the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority, are British Nigerians who have built the world’s first diamond battery, which can provide power for thousands of years.
Working in a lab in Oxfordshire, these ladies and other scientists on their team have combined the beauty and brute strength of diamonds with the power of atomic energy. Explaining the process of making the diamond batteries, Ekanem said, “These batteries are made from diamonds that have been synthetically grown in the lab.
“What we’re trying to do is to have the carbon-14 put into the diamond, and diamond, being a very hard substance, can absorb off that radiation and ensure that this radiation doesn’t get out. And so, the actual battery itself is very safe.”
Studies have shown that Carbon-14, a radioactive gas, emits fast-moving electrons as it decays. The battery uses those to create electricity, much like a solar panel uses light particles. Compared to a normal battery, which may only last for a few months, the half-life of carbon-14 is so long. In 5,000 years, a diamond battery would still be at 50 percent power.
This technology is particularly suitable for places where you either can’t access it because it is in space or subsea or you don’t want to access it because it is in a hazardous environment. That includes inside the human body, from devices like pacemakers to hearing aids and even implants in the eyes.
Sanni explained that the benefits for the environment could be even greater.
She said, “If you have to change or return or dispose of this battery in any case, you’re going to have to just send it back to the manufacturer. They incinerate it, we capture the carbon-14 back, and we reuse it. So, literally, it gives us no waste at all.”
According to reports, this technology will be an affordable alternative to alkaline and lithium. Ekanem has worked with the UK Atomic Energy Authority for over three years, starting as a Research and Development Engineer. She has also held product engineering roles at Harrowgate Energy Services Limited and Chevron.
She has a bachelor’s degree from Covenant University, a Master’s in Advanced Process Engineering from Loughborough University, and a PhD in Chemical Engineering from Imperial College, London.
On the other hand, Sanni has been a Tritium Engineer at the UK Energy Authority since 2017. She also worked at ExxonMobil before she left Nigeria and attended the University of Manchester.