Have you ever tried durian? It is said to be delicious, but you probably have never seen a durian-scented (榴莲味的) candle. That's because the fruit smells. And for this reason, some people dislike durian.
But Vincent Gomes of the University of Sydney has a strong interest in durian. In his eyes, durian is more than a fruit. He and his workmates have discovered something amazing about it. They found that durian was a natural super-capacitor (超级电容器).
Super-capacitors, just like batteries (电池), are used to store energy. But compared to the batteries we use today, they have a few advantages. They can store a much larger amount of energy. They can be recharged (再充电) much more quickly. And most importantly, they have a much longer lifespan. The lithium-ion (锂离子) batteries in our smartphones depend on chemicals to produce electricity. When the chemicals are used up, the batteries become harmful waste. This has caused serious pollution problems. Scientists have been trying to invent better batteries for years.
Although super-capacitors have many advantages, they haven't been widely used yet. The traditional materials used to make them are expensive. Durian, in comparison, is much cheaper. It has given scientists hope.
Gomes and his workmates have worked out a way to turn cores (果核) from durian into super-capacitors. But there are still many tech problems left for them to solve. Perhaps by the end of this decade, durian batteries will have hit the market. Just hope they won't be very smelly—we will need to use them in many places, from our cars to our phones!
