A new copolymer-based battery developed by researchers at Ulm and Jena universities in Germany stores energy from sunlight for days and can release it when required as green hydrogen. The battery is rechargeable, and the charge and discharge process can be activated by flipping a pH switch, a press release said.
With the focus on switching away from fossil fuels, countries are adopting large-scale solar and wind power plants. However, for applications requiring higher energy density, hydrogen is a more viable alternative. It can be burnt, much like a fossil fuel, but produces only water as a byproduct, offering a carbon-free solution for energy-intensive applications.
Yeah, the article isn't very good. Reading the Nature paper is seams like they use TEA as a sacrificial donor in this proof of concept, which obviously wouldn't work in an actual rechargeable battery. But the co-polymers their used are apparently similar to those often used in redox-flow batteries, so I could imaging it would be possible to build such a battery, and re-charge it by circulating the liquids through a large solar tray.