Laptop batteries could be given a boost thanks to the key chemical in making rotten eggs smell.
The next generation of long-lasting power packs could make use of sulfur, which is the active element that, when combined with hydrogen, produces the horrible stench.
Researchers from Australia's Monash University - led by Professor Matthew Hill, Dr Mahdokht Shaibani and Professor Mainak Majumber - have been working on a new lithium-sulfur battery interlay which results in fast lithium transfer and gives a performance and longevity boost to the batteries.
This in turn could mean cheaper, cleaner and faster portable batteries.
In a statement, Professor Hill said: "A lithium battery interlayer sits in the middle of the battery and keeps the electrodes apart, it helps lithium get from one side of the battery to the other faster.
"The new interlayer overcomes the slower charge and discharge rates of previous generation lithium-sulfur batteries."
The new sulfur-based batteries' energy density is up to five times larger than that of the standard lithium-ion battery.
As an example. this means they could increase the range of a Telsa S car to roughly 2,000 miles.
