Strategic Elements takes breath-activated energy demonstrator into final testing

• Final testing begins on breath-activated Moisture Dock engineering demonstrator
• SOR plans to charge a removable phone battery without mains electricity or solar power
• Full demonstration targeted for Q4 2026, subject to successful final testing

Special Report: Strategic Elements has started final testing of its breath-activated Moisture Dock ahead of a planned demonstration using a Nokia feature phone.

These tests aim to demonstrate that the company’s custom Energy Ink cell pack will generate electricity to charge a removable lithium-ion battery without mains electricity, an external power supply or solar power.

The Strategic Elements (ASX:SOR) team will then fit the battery to a commercially available Nokia feature phone, power it on and make a one-minute call, providing a simple, recognisable proof point that energy has been transferred.

The demonstration is targeted for Q4 2026, subject to successful final testing.

Wholly owned SOR subsidiary Australian Advanced Materials is developing Energy Ink with materials scientists at the University of New South Wales and other research partners.

The Dock is an engineering demonstration platform rather than a consumer charging product. Its purpose is to demonstrate controlled moisture activation, integration with commercial electronics and energy transfer into a removable battery.

How the moisture dock works

The planned demonstration starts with a discharged removable lithium-ion battery inside the Dock. Breath introduced into a sealed chamber establishes the moisture conditions that activate the cell pack.

Commercial e-peas power-management electronics then direct the electricity into the battery.

The company says development work has completed the breath-capture and moisture-management hardware, integrated the cell pack and simplified the energy-transfer architecture.

The final design also eliminated the need for an intermediate supercapacitor, allowing electricity from the cell pack to pass through the commercial power-management circuit into the removable battery, reducing component count.

The modular design allows the team to swap cell packs and battery modules to assess different configurations.

The Dock’s prototype cells incorporate graphene oxide-based and metallic powder inks.

Once fully wet and activated, the moisture-driven mechanism establishes most of the voltage, while metallic material supplies most of the current and is consumed during operation.

Controlling moisture aims to make output more predictable. Potential future investigations include sweat or skin contact in wearable patches, droplets applied to packaging or diagnostic tests, and leveraging controlled humidity within buildings.

Those remain illustrative possibilities, with achievable applications dependent on output, operating duration and component power requirements.

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The push to reduce battery dependence

Alongside the Dock, Strategic Elements is pursuing a separate battery-free materials program targeting thin, flexible electronics and stable, non-consumable systems.

The company says conventional batteries can add thickness, complicate assembly and create maintenance and disposal requirements.

Battery-free technology could allow electronic functionality to be incorporated into everyday products and surfaces where conventional batteries are impractical. Potential low-power functions include sensing, indicators, displays, authentication and communication, subject to achieving suitable electrical performance.

Regulation adds a product-design incentive. EU portable-battery removability and replaceability requirements apply from February 2027, subject to exceptions.

These rules could encourage manufacturers to investigate battery-free designs, although they do not require moisture-powered technology.

For Strategic Elements, the immediate milestone remains successful final testing followed by the complete Dock demonstration. The company may seek partners for material selection, co-development and manufacturing adaptation.

This article was developed in collaboration with Strategic Elements, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.

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