Lithium Battery Electrode Increases Battery Life, Decrease Charge Time by Factor of 10

Chemical engineering is amazing, and there are so many incredible accomplishments possible by just mixing one element with another. Lithium-ion batteries represent an important (if expensive) advancement in battery technology…but they aren’t quite “there” yet. But a new electrode developed by researchers at Northwestern University could increase the capacity of lithium-ion batteries by 10, while decreasing the charge time.There have been many great ideas this year regarding battery technology, from electrical gels to energy-storing membranes. But lithium-ion batteries are still the go-to source for batteries, found in everything from laptops to electric vehicles. Current technology offers a balance between energy storage and recharge time…neither great, but good enough for now.

Lithium-ion batteries work by passing lithiun atoms from one end of the battery to another through the anode and cathode. Charging and density is limited by how many lithium atoms can pass through the anode, made up of long, thin (one atom thin) graphene sheets, which can only accommodate one lithium atom for every six carbon atoms. Scientists have also experimented with replacing carbon with silicon, which can hold more lithium atoms, but the silicon deforms and loses charging capacity after a short while. So what you end up with is a sort of lithium traffic jam, as not enough lithium can make it through the anode to speed up charging or increase range.

However, by placing a thin layer of silicon between the graphene sheets, and creating minute “holes” in the graphene sheets, researchers were able to increase power density by a factor of ten, while simultaneously decreasing charging time, also by a factor of ten. This would mean that current battery technology could be improved dramatically, without significantly increasing costs.

What that would mean is a current Nissan LEAF would have a range of 730 miles, and a empty-to-full charging time of about 3 minutes on a Level 3 charger. My only question is…what is the freakin’ hold up?

Source: PhysOrg

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Tags: Batteries, battery, cathode, Charging, Dr. Kung, electrode, ev range, lithium, lithium-ion, Nissan LEAF, Northwestern University

About the Author

Christopher DeMorro A writer and gearhead who loves all things automotive, from hybrids to HEMIs, Chris can be found wrenching or writing- or esle, he's running, because he's one of those crazy people who gets enjoyment from running insane distances.

Mark Jacobs

Chris,

I like your articles but please, please, proof read them before posting. The articles are much more enjoyable when the sentences make sense. Some snippets from the past few days…

“There have been many great ideas this yet regarding battery technology”
“Lithium-ion batteries work by passing lithion atoms ”
“Chevy Volt bursting into flames a few weeks at at the NHTSA’s testing center”
“The 9.3 gallon tank isn’t all that back”
“It’s pretty incredible he has able to drive an entire year “
- http://www.sublimeburnout.com Christopher DeMorro
  
  @ Mark Jacobs
  
  Sigh. You’re right, you know. I’ve been very hurried the past few days, but that is not an acceptable excuse for failing to proofread.
  
  Noted, and changes will be made.
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Mike

I share your frustration with the speed at which all these new developments in anode/cathode materials come into the real world where we could ust them. I know (or at least it seems as if ) I’ve read about half a dozen new miracle materials that will drastically increase the capacity of lithium ion batteries but none have come to production yet. For now I guess I’ll just keep hoping.
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Walker

Decreasing charge time by a factor of 10 and increasing power density by a power of 10 is the same thing. You’re saying exactly the same thing with both statements…meaning that AT BEST the improvement is 10x. Also, a 3 minute charge time on a Level 3 charger is silly for a number of reasons.

First: Power Density (charge/discharge RATE) is different from Energy Density
This means that the researchers aren’t storing more lithium ions in the electrodes; they’re providing a “wider highway” to get the ions out of the electrode faster using the silicon sheets as the pathway. This probably changes energy density slightly, although that’s not mentioned in the article. You can move more ions, thus you can charge/discharge with higher current. The capacity would remain relatively unchanged.

Second: A Level 3 charger doesn’t scale with the battery in the car.
Chargers are fixed power delivery systems. They can deliver UP TO the maximum rating of the charger. Assuming a Nissan Leaf has 24kWh, and the best CHAdeMO charger can provide 61kW, it will take 23 mins to charge the full capacity of that battery. Assuming again that the Leaf is only using 75% of the battery, a fast charge would take no less than 17 minutes to charge the battery.

God forbid Nissan puts their newest 48kWh battery into the car…it’ll take 35 mins minimum with the Level 3 charger at max power to charge that vehicle.

Now, assuming we have the charger in place that can handle a 3 minute charge of a 48kWh battery (200 mile range), we would need a substation to power it because the level of power needed will be approximately 1MW (48kWh * 3 min / 60 min/hr). Now imagine a world where we have “fueling stations” with 4-10MW of power available at each one for fast charging of your vehicles.

I realize this is a chicken or egg problem and that many people believe that “if you build it, he [power companies] will come.” That may be true, but we better start mandating a revamp of the grid AND put laws in place to protect consumers or we’ll all be taken to the cleaners with the future of energy in this country.

This battery is a step in the right direction, but isn’t going to mean that you’re taking any cross country trips in your EV anytime soon.
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jonnny

shwing!