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DIY Renewable Energy Solutions: Aluminum-Air Batteries & Saltwater Lamps (lemmy.world)
submitted 9 months ago by to c/hmres@lemmy.world
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Hi everyone! I’ve been diving into alternative, off-grid energy solutions, and I thought I’d share two interesting concepts: Aluminum-Air Batteries and Saltwater Lamps.

Aluminum-Air Batteries are lightweight, long-lasting, and provide eco-friendly backup power, perfect for small-scale renewable systems. The great thing is they don’t require complicated infrastructure, just the battery and an electrolyte.

Saltwater Lamps are a simple, sustainable lighting solution that uses just saltwater to power up a lamp. They’re great for off-grid homes or emergency lighting.

Both of these solutions are incredibly easy to implement, and they could fit right into the DIY renewable energy systems many of you are working on. Anyone here experimented with similar systems or ideas? I’d love to hear how you’re using them or improving on them!

Let’s chat about integrating these into home energy setups!

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[–] 1 point 9 months ago (3 children)

It would need to be significantly cheaper than lead acid to offset all those disadvantages. With lead acid, it's ready to go immediately in an emergency, you get 500 recharges, and lasts for 5 years.

But lithium iron phosphate is the real leader. Cheap, lightweight, 10-20 year lifespan, thousands of recharges.

Both lead acid and lithium iron are completely recyclable. Lead acid batteries have an established recovery and recycling system at 99% compared to 50% for aluminum recycling.

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  • [–] [S] 0 points 9 months ago (2 children)

    Thanks for the feedback! You make a great point about the advantages of lead acid and lithium iron phosphate.

    That said, the appeal of aluminum-air lies in its safety, zero pollution, and extremely long shelf life (20+ years). It’s designed for specific use cases, especially where weight and recharging are less of a concern, like in emergency scenarios or remote locations where long-term storage matters more.

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  • [–] 1 point 9 months ago (1 child)

    zero pollution

    Lead acid and lithium iron phosphate are also equivalently "zero pollution". I would expect on a life cycle basis that Lead and Lithium batteries are less polluting because they are rechargeable rather than single use. Reprocessing the aluminum hydroxide is energy intensive.

    extremely long shelf life (20+ years)

    It only has a long shelf life if the electrolyte is kept separate. All batteries have a virtual infinite shelf life if their electrolyte is kept separate.

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  • [–] [S] 0 points 9 months ago

    Thanks for your comment! You’re right that lead-acid and lithium batteries are less polluting due to their rechargeability. Regarding the shelf life, you’re correct that all batteries last longer if their electrolyte is kept separate.You look like a battery expert.jajaja

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