MIT's Fuel Cell Makes Brain Implants Better By Using Glucose To Derive Power

MIT's engineers are always on the move - discovering new things to make human life easier and better. The latest research from MIT in the field of biomedical engineering makes a breakthrough for future medical implants. The latest fuel cell developed by Rahul Sarpeshkar, an associate professor of electrical engineering and computer science at MIT uses glucose to derive power. Sarpeshkar's research was published in June 12 edition of the journal <em>PLoS ONE. </em>The researchers have embedded the cell on the silicon chip for the first time, making it easier to integrate it with other circuits required in brain implants.

[caption id="attachment_35799" align="aligncenter" width="368"] Silicon wafer consists of glucose fuel cells of varying sizes; the largest is 64 by 64 mm.Image: Sarpeshkar Lab[/caption]

The concept of glucose powered fuel cell isn't new. In 1970, scientists discovered that they could make a pacemaker run on glucose powered cell. However, the idea was abandoned to favor the Li-Ion batteries which are capable of producing more power per unit area compared to the glucose powered cell. However, the new fuel cell developed by Sarpeshkar and his team uses no biological components. It uses the same materials used to manufacture typical semiconductor silicon chips. The cell employs Platinum catalyst, which has a proven history of long-term biocompatibility with the human body.

Further details can be obtained from MIT's #-Link-Snipped-#.