[Uncledave]

Plain Old Plates: In a typical capacitor, electrons are removed from one plate and deposited on the other. Polarized molecules in the dielectric concentrate the electric field. One major factor determining capacitance is the surface area of the plates.

Plated Packed with Ions: An ultracapacitor can store more charge than a capacitor can, because the ­activated carbon has a pocked interior, much like a sponge. This means that ions in the electrolyte can cling to more surface area.

Enter the Nano-World: With finer dimensions and more uniform distribution, carbon nanotubes enable greater energy storage in ultracapacitors than activated carbon does.

How to Ultracap a Car: Ultracapacitors can power a number of a car’s ­functions locally. The orange arrows show how an ultra­capacitor discharges to power acceleration,while the blue arrows show energy flowingback during braking. The red squaresindicate places where ultracapacitors can be used.

[Uncledave]

RE Ping Renewable Energy Ping

Please Freep Mail me if you'd like on/off

[Domandred]

Sexy capacitor pics!

I'll be in my bunk

[Yo-Yo]

You just need a bank of these:

[Red Badger]

Sexy capacitors? Is that part of Kirchoff’s Law?.........

[Parley Baer]

Just had a thought. I wonder if it is posible to capture static electricity while driving down the road. I know there is a charge built up in airplanes and when landing they need to be grounded.

[Sender]

Capacitor porn, pics of the buses.

[Tarpon]

What’s the energy density per pound?

[polymuser]

So long as the Chinese don't steal then screw up this recipe, and we get even more bad caps (with vent goo) in our stuff.

[lilylangtree]

When the “flux capacitor” is developed, tada—warp drive!

[pepsi_junkie]

The article indicates that their goal would be (amongst others) to create a capacitor which could hold so much charge for its size as to make batteries irrelevant. This would, i presume, allow for much lighter products and I know for certain that the military would drool over something lighter in weight than conventional batteries that could power small devices soldiers must carry on the battlefield. Big money there.

But on the the physics! Capacitors discharge exponentially when put to a load. That is to say, the lose their charge very rapidly! And if that load is, say, a short circuit, they lose their charge explosively (literally). How does one use capacitors for energy that must be used over a long period of time? I'd have to guess that some sort of voltage controlled impedance load that would vary the load between a very high state to an operating state to allow the capacitor to discharge in pulses of current or some such thing. Probably something completely different would actually work but that's my gut reaction. Still some science to be done!

[domenad]

If they could somehow interlock two layers of nanotubes, separated by a super-low permittivity layer, they could cut the distance appreciably between the two. Halve the distance, you double the capacitance. I have no idea how to do it on the microscopic level, but when you look at what they accomplish with VLSI, it's hardly impossible.

That said, I live for the day I can hoist two middle fingers very proudly towards Mecca and tell the sandeaters I no longer need their oil.

[rednesss]

I’ll be sure to wait and see how these things stand up to the rigors of an automobile and be especially interested in the crash survivability data. Nothing like being in a car when you get T-boned and several million volts decides to let loose.

[isthisnickcool]

American Ingenuity Will Come up with a way

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

I thought you were kidding. This was better’n a new Victoria’s Secret Catalogue!

[anymouse]

More neat science