Solid Power has announced the production and delivery of the company’s first-generation multi-layer, multi-ampere-hour (Ah) all-solid-state lithium metal batteries. Solid-state batteries have long been thought of as the “Holy Grail” of EV battery technology, as the lithium metal anode provides more energy and range than today’s Li-ion design, and the solid electrolyte increases safety by… Read more »
A new lithium-based electrolyte invented by Stanford University scientists could pave the way for the next generation of EVs. In a study published in Nature Energy, Stanford researchers demonstrated how their novel electrolyte design boosts the performance of lithium metal batteries. “Most electric cars run on lithium-ion batteries, which are rapidly approaching their theoretical limit… Read more »
Researchers at Tokyo Metropolitan University have developed a new method to make ceramic-based flexible electrolyte sheets for lithium metal batteries. They combined a garnet-type ceramic, a polymer binder, and an ionic liquid, producing a quasi-solid-state sheet electrolyte. The synthesis is carried out at room temperature, requiring significantly less energy than existing high-temperature (>1,000° C) processes…. Read more »
Carbon nanotubes could make high-powered, fast-charging lithium metal batteries an alternative to lithium-ion batteries, according to new research from Rice University. In a paper published this month in the journal Advanced Materials, the researchers show how a carbon nanotube film can be used to keep batteries safe from dendrites, spear-like protrusions that naturally form on… Read more »
The Canadian Transport Ministry has officially banned the transport of lithium metal batteries as cargo on passenger flights, bringing its regulations into line with a ban adopted by the International Civil Aviation Organization in 2014 (the US has already instituted a ban). The new rule does not apply to lithium-ion batteries, or to lithium metal… Read more »
The French city of Triel-sur-Seine has launched a trial of an electric shuttle service that uses a six-meter electric bus made by Bluebus, a subsidiary of the Bolloré Group. The minibuses, which will be delivered this summer, are part of an order for up to 800 e-buses from three manufacturers by Île-de-France Mobilités, an agency… Read more »
A team led by Professor Zhao Tianshou of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology has proposed a novel cathode design concept for lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries. Li-S batteries are regarded as attractive alternatives to Li-ion batteries. They are known for their high energy density, while their major component, sulfur, is abundant, light, cheap and… Read more »
Momentum Technologies, a Dallas-based materials science company focused on extracting critical metals from electronic waste, has licensed a process developed by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) for recovering cobalt and other metals from spent Li-ion batteries. Several critical elements, such as cobalt, nickel, lithium and manganese, are used in EV batteries. Using ORNL’s Membrane… Read more »
A team from metals research institute SWERIM in Sweden has reported on a smelting reduction process to recover cobalt, nickel, manganese and lithium simultaneously from spent Li-ion batteries. A paper on their work was published in the Journal of Power Sources.
Battery startup Anzode has received a $1.7-million award for a three-year effort to develop a new generation of non-lithium batteries, as part of the California Energy Commission (CEC) Grant Funding Opportunity “Developing non-Lithium Ion Energy Storage Technologies to Support California’s Clean Energy Goals.” The CEC has awarded almost $11 million for developers of energy storage… Read more »