Harnessing vitamin B2 and glucose for safer battery technology

• Riboflavin isn’t just a morning supplement; it serves as a stable, efficient alternative to the expensive metal catalysts that have held back previous glucose battery designs.
• The ultimate dream: a scalable, affordable battery built from non-toxic, everyday materials, providing residential energy storage that feels as natural as sugar in your coffee.

When we think of the batteries that power our homes and devices, we usually picture something heavy, metallic, and maybe just a little intimidating.

But researchers have just tossed a sweet new twist into the mix. A team reporting in ACS Energy Letters has put vitamin B2 (a.k.a. riboflavin) and glucose—the very sugar found in plants and the snacks in your kitchen—at the heart of an innovative battery prototype.

Drawing inspiration from human body

It’s all inspired by the way our bodies break down glucose for energy, relying on enzymes to shuttle electrons and spark life’s processes. Channeling this natural genius, the researchers built a flow cell battery—a system well-known for allowing electrolytes to circulate and convert stored chemical energy into electricity—using riboflavin as a key ingredient.

In this design, the vitamin acts as a mediator, efficiently ferrying electrons from the glucose-based electrolyte to the battery’s electrodes.

Why riboflavin and glucose?

According to lead author Jong-Hwa Shon, the target was clear: create a safe, affordable, and sustainable battery using materials that are non-toxic and abundant. Glucose fits the bill—it’s cheap, plentiful, and harvested from an array of plant sources.

Riboflavin, meanwhile, isn’t just a morning supplement; it serves as a stable, efficient alternative to the expensive metal catalysts that have held back previous glucose battery designs.

How the prototype works?

The new battery relies on two carbon-based electrodes—one positive, one negative—bathed in different electrolytes.

Around the negative electrode, glucose and riboflavin mingle, while the positive electrode gets either potassium ferricyanide (handy for precise measurements) or, more ambitiously, oxygen, which mimics real-world fuel cells and keeps things thrifty for practical use. The magic happens as riboflavin catalyses electron flow, helping unlock the latent energy in sugar.

The results put a smile on my face. The potassium ferricyanide version packed enough punch to rival today’s vanadium-based flow cells—yes, those same hefty batteries found in industrial settings.

The oxygen-powered version lagged slightly, as reactions at the electrodes were slower and riboflavin tended to break down in light, prompting self-discharge. But, even with these hurdles, power density still edged out the results of previous all-organic glucose batteries.

Where does this leave us? The team aims to shore up weaknesses by shielding riboflavin from light and refining how the battery cell is engineered. The ultimate dream: a scalable, affordable battery built from non-toxic, everyday materials, providing residential energy storage that feels as natural as sugar in your coffee.

If they succeed, we might soon be storing clean energy in tech that’s both sweet and safe.