Half a croissant, on a plate, with a sign in front of it saying '50c'
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No waste in batteries

There hot when you take them out.
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When you take out the rechargable batteries after the five hours or so, they are warm. This is due to the conversion of energies. Using the principal of solar panels, couldn't the charger be put it to a water device (as heat transfers from a warm area to a cold one) so this lost heat is reconverted to electricity and therefore charges the battery more quickly?
Bugsy, Jun 30 2002

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       No.   

       Disclaimer, I know nothing about the theory behind this -- but it sounds to me awfully dangerous. Wouldn't a charger built into a home freezer be a logical step forward?
reensure, Jun 30 2002
  

       You could put it under a water tank (like a water heater). But then the 'fire box' is going to get hot, which means the recharger is going to get hot, which means it'll work less efficiently, which means it'll give off more heat, which means the 'fire box' will get hotter, which means....
phoenix, Jun 30 2002
  

       Go study the laws of thermodynamics again. There is a limit to how much useful energy you can draw out of any machine. Something will always be lost as heat.
DrCurry, Jul 01 2002
  

       But what percentage of the energy input goes to warm the battery? Specific heat capacity of battery times weight of battery times rise in temperature equals something or other.
pottedstu, Jul 02 2002
  

       That is the exact formula
thumbwax, Jul 02 2002
  
      
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