Rechargeable lithium metal batteries with increased energy density, performance, and safety may be possible with a newly-developed, solid-electrolyte interphase (SEI), according to Penn State researchers. As the demand for higher-energy-density lithium metal batteries increases — for electric vehicles, smartphones, and drones — stability of the SEI has been a critical issue halting their advancement because a salt layer on the
Since 2012, Stefan Freunberger of the Institute for Chemistry and Technology of Materials at TU Graz has been working on development of a new generation of batteries with enhanced performance and longer useful lives, and which are also cheaper to produce than current models. He believes that lithium-oxygen batteries have significant potential. In 2017, in the course of his work,
Researchers at WMG at the University of Warwick have found that use of inductive charging, whilst highly convenient, risks depleting the life of mobile phones using typical LIBs (Lithium-ion batteries) Consumers and manufacturers have ramped up their interest in this convenient charging technology, abandoning fiddling with plugs and cables in a favour of just setting the phone directly on a
Hope has been restored for the rechargeable lithium metal battery — a potential battery powerhouse relegated for decades to the laboratory by its short life expectancy and occasional fiery demise while its rechargeable sibling, the lithium-ion battery, now rakes in more than $30 billion a year. A new coating could make lightweight lithium metal batteries safe and long lasting, a
Tesla has reportedly signed a battery supply deal with LG Chem for Gigafactory 3 in China. It would be Tesla’s first deal to supply battery cells for its electric vehicles with a company other than Panasonic. At first, CEO Elon Musk said that all of Tesla’s new factories, including Gigafactory 3 in China, will include the production of both battery
Large anions with long tails (blue) in ionic liquids can make them self-assemble into sandwich-like bilayer structures on electrode surfaces. Ionic liquids with such structures have much improved energy storage capabilities. Image: Xianwen Mao, MIT Novel class of “ionic liquids” may store more energy than conventional electrolytes — with less risk of catching fire. Supercapacitors, electrical devices that store and
As car manufacturers ramp up production of electric cars, the metals used to make the vehicles’ batteries may face a supply crunch in the next few years, according to a new report. Lithium, cobalt, and nickel supplies are expected to be worst hit, the Wednesday report from energy consulting and research firm Wood Mackenzie. That’s as analysts predict a boom
The government has sanctioned 5,595 electric buses in 64 cities for intracity and intercity operations under the second phase of Faster Adoption and Manufacture of (Hybrid and) Electric Vehicles (FAME) India scheme in order to push for clean mobility in public transportation, an official release said on Thursday. The Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises had invited expression of interest (EoI) from cities
Two short years ago, Tesla pieced together the world’s largest battery for the state of South Australia, and with great effect. The company is continuing its moves in this space with a massive new battery dubbed the Megapack, of which it says enough units can be linked together to take energy storage into the giga-scale realm. The 129-MWh facility Tesla built for
Metal-air batteries are one of the lightest and most compact types of batteries available, but they can have a major limitation: When not in use, they degrade quickly, as corrosion eats away at their metal electrodes. Now, MIT researchers have found a way to substantially reduce that corrosion, making it possible for such batteries to have much longer shelf lives.