Battery Technology

By Jennifer J Burke, ORNL Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers have developed a new family of cathodes with the potential to replace the costly cobalt-based cathodes typically found in today’s lithium-ion batteries that power electric vehicles and consumer electronics. The new class called NFA, which stands for nickel-, iron- and aluminum-based cathode, is a derivative…

National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s all-perovskite tandem technology could open up an entirely new solar-energy application: vehicles powered directly by photovoltaics (PV). No previous PV technology achieves the combined flexibility, low cost and high specific power needed for PV-powered vehicles. All-perovskite tandems have a specific power 10x higher than flexible PV technologies of similar cost, and…

Group14 Technologies, a global provider of silicon-carbon composite materials for lithium-ion markets, today announced it has secured $17 million in Series B funding led by SK Materials, a manufacturer of special gases and industrial gases, with participation from returning investor OVP Venture Partners. Group14 will use this operating capital to scale production to meet the…

In the ongoing quest to build a better battery, researchers used the Canadian Light Source (CLS) at the University of Saskatchewan to identify the potential of using polymer composites as electrode matrices to increase the capacity of rechargeable lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries. “The composition of the adhesive and conductive framework for batteries hasn’t changed in years,”…

New York State today announced the unveiling of a new energy storage project that uses an innovation in lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery technology. The success of this project will demonstrate the safety and use of commercial energy storage systems that could enable more integration of renewable energy resources into the grid. Located at the New York…

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory’s Flow-Through Microelectrode Cell for Precision Electroanalytical Chemistry provides the simplest, fastest, most affordable, precise and comprehensive tool for analyzing electrochemical systems that employ solid electrolytes. Because of its cost and performance advantages, this testing innovation can accelerate development of electrochemical technologies that meet critical global needs, particularly electrical energy storage and…

Engineers at Southwest Research Institute were able to interfere with the charging process of an electric vehicle (EV) by simulating a malicious attack as part of an automotive cybersecurity research initiative. The SwRI team reverse-engineered the signals and circuits on an EV and a J1772 charger, the most common interface for managing EV charging in…

Since Sony commercialized the first lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) containing organic liquid electrolytes in 1991, LIBs have been widely used in portable electronic devices and more recently in vehicles. However, as the energy density and/or size of cells increases, LIBs have incurred safety concerns due to volatile and flammable organic liquid electrolytes. Therefore, the world is…

The insatiable demand for portable power, from handheld electronics to electric vehicles, continues to drive materials innovations for Lithium-Ion Batteries (LIBs). Current inorganic cathodes in LIBs have peaked in performance, yet still suffer from low capacity and energy density, limited structural versatility, environmental pollution and safety risks which have created hurdles in the consumer marketplace.…

By Diana Anderson Vehicles powered by polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) are energy-efficient and eco-friendly, but despite increasing public interest in PEMFC-powered transportation, current performance of materials that are used in fuel cells limits their widespread commercialization. Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory led a team to investigate reactions…

Electric vehicles are expected to include solid-state batteries as an innovative approach, according to IDTechEx’s research report “Solid-State and Polymer Batteries 2020-2030: Technology, Patents, Forecasts, Players“. The mature lithium-ion battery technology has its intrinsic limitations Since commercialized in 1991, lithium-ion batteries have received a worldwide success. However, this cannot hide their intrinsic limitations in terms…

by University of California San Diego Scientists at UC San Diego have discovered a new anode material that enables lithium-ion batteries to be safely recharged within minutes for thousands of cycles. Known as a disordered rocksalt, the new anode is made up of earth-abundant lithium, vanadium and oxygen atoms arranged in a similar way as…

Group14 Technologies, a provider of silicon-carbon composite materials for global lithium-ion markets, announced today that it has been selected as a winner of the Department Of Energy’s Energy Storage Grand Challenge and will receive $3.96 million to integrate best-in-class synergistic technologies, delivering batteries that will meet the performance objectives for tomorrow’s electric vehicles. The Vehicle…

 Utility, industrial, commercial and government facilities are increasingly turning to Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESSs) in a variety of sizes and power outputs for reliable back-up power, to avoid peak demand charges and to store energy generated by renewable power systems for use at a later time. The market is expected to exceed more than…

Validating the safety features of its patented lithium-ion (Li-ion) technology, Cadenza Innovation today announced that  verifies that the company’s supercell battery architecture stops propagation when thermal runaway is induced inside the battery itself. By doing so, Cadenza’s technology solves a global industry safety issue seen in multiple battery fires and explosions in Arizona, South Korea…

By Johnathon Briggs Scientists at Argonne National Laboratory have made progress toward a higher-capacity lithium-ion battery to meet rising consumer demand. With the growing number of electric vehicles on the road and an increasing reliance on consumer electronics, demand has never been greater for development of lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) that can sustain a higher energy…

By Theresa Duque In the pursuit of a rechargeable battery that can power electric vehicles (EVs) for hundreds of miles on a single charge, scientists have endeavored to replace the graphite anodes currently used in EV batteries with lithium metal anodes. But while lithium metal extends an EV’s driving range by 30 to 50%, it…

Oak Ridge National Laboratory scientists seeking the source of charge loss in lithium-ion batteries demonstrated that coupling a thin-film cathode with a solid electrolyte is a rapid way to determine the root cause. In a study, researchers prepared a lithium nickel manganese cobalt oxide cathode as dense, thin-films free from binders and additives. The cathode’s…

HUBER+SUHNER, a global supplier of electrical and optical connectivity solutions, has launched the RADOX HPC500; a new addition to the RADOX high-power charging portfolio. It is the world’s first cooled charging-cable system that allows continuous charging at 500 Amperes even in high-temperature environments. The HPC500 cable and connecter builds on the proven performance and design…

  Rechargeable batteries are at the heart of many new technologies involving, for example, the increased use of renewable energies. More specifically, they are employed to power electric vehicles, cell phones, and laptops. Scientists at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) and the Helmholtz Institute Mainz (HIM) in Germany have now presented a non-contact method for…

IDTechEx estimates total demand for Li-ion batteries to have been over 200 GWh in 2019 and forecast Li-ion demand for plug-in electric cars alone to be nearly 350 GWh by 2025, but can supply meet this demand? Automotive manufacturers the world over are now pledging to electrify their fleets. However, many traditional automotive manufacturers were…

New battery technology involving microwaves may provide an avenue for renewable energy conversion and storage. Purdue University researchers created a technique to turn waste polyethylene terephthalate, one of the most recyclable polymers, into components of batteries. “We use an ultrafast microwave irradiation process to turn PET, or polyethylene terephthalate, flakes into disodium terephthalate, and use…

By Glenn Roberts Jr. From next-gen smartphones to longer-range electric cars and an improved power grid, better batteries are driving tech innovation. And to push batteries beyond their present-day performance, researchers want to see “under the hood” to learn how the individual ingredients of battery materials behave beneath the surface. This could ultimately lead to…

By Christina Nunez Many processes that generate electricity also produce heat, a potent energy resource that often goes untapped everywhere from factories to vehicles to power plants. An innovative system currently being developed at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory can quickly store heat and release it for use when needed, surpassing…

A team of scientists led by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has captured in real time how lithium ions move in lithium titanate (LTO), a fast-charging battery electrode material made of lithium, titanium and oxygen. They discovered that distorted arrangements of lithium and surrounding atoms in…