It has been estimated that round half 1,000,000 disposable vapes are thrown away every day within the US alone. However whereas these vapes are marketed as disposable, they’re really full of helpful digital elements which might be something however trash. They usually have highly effective microcontrollers, typically shows, and high-capacity rechargeable batteries. It’s these batteries, specifically, that lead many hobbyists to select them up once they discover them tossed in parking tons or alongside the aspect of the road.
Chris Doel has taken vape amassing to an excessive. Some individuals could have a number of of them, however Doel has a number of hundred of them. When you might have that many, you are able to do extra than simply energy your Arduino and Raspberry Pi tasks — much more. How far more, you ask? Properly, in accordance with Doel, you possibly can energy a complete residence. And he has the receipts to show it.
One of many battery bundles (📷: Chris Doel)
Doel’s objective was to construct a 2,500Wh battery cell, which he calculated to be enough to totally energy his residence for about eight hours. Vape battery capability varies, however he discovered that the bigger ones generally had 1,500mAh, 5.55Wh items. Utilizing these, the objective could possibly be achieved with about 500 batteries. That’s a tall order for somebody amassing them from the streets, so Doel additionally picked up a big batch from a store that accepts used vapes for recycling.
The batteries which have been sitting round for a very long time and have been drained too far are of little use, so a easy take a look at rig was constructed to test them. Doel discovered that by puffing a vape, you possibly can decide if sufficient voltage stays to salvage the battery. Utilizing a CPAP air pump, every was examined to see if it both labored usually or blinked a lightweight. If not, it was again within the recycling pile.
Working on vapes! (📷: Chris Doel)
The great batteries have been then all charged as much as the identical degree and given one other take a look at with a modified 18650 cell tester that might do the job in parallel. The five hundred remaining batteries have been linked in teams of 9 by way of 3D-printed holders. Every battery was linked to a bus bar by way of a fuse to forestall issues from brief circuits. These bundles have been linked in parallel to type rows, then stacks of those rows have been constructed up in sequence till 50 volts of output was achieved.
Lastly, Doel put in a battery administration system to observe every row and stop minor points like a catastrophic explosion. The battery cell was then hooked as much as an inverter to transform the 50 volt output to the 240VAC that was wanted domestically. The inverter’s output was then fed into his workshop and residential, and it considerably surprisingly labored. Every little thing from lights to the microwave, espresso machine, computer systems, and electronics devices all fired up completely usually. Not unhealthy for a pile of junk!
