Batteries are wonderful inventions, but like so many things in life, they don’t last. With every charge and discharge cycle, a battery’s capacity is reduced, until eventually it becomes inadequate for its application. “Why does this degradation occur?” muses Northwestern University’s Christopher Wolverton. “In many cases, something probably happened to the cathode.” Wolverton has developed… Read more »
Search Results Found For: "Battery venting"
An airbag for battery packs: PyroPhobic says its unique thermoplastics will stop thermal runaway
Engineers have been searching for ways to mitigate the risk of fire with Li-ion batteries since the technology was first commercialized. Chemists are creating new cell formulations that are less prone to problems, electronics experts are designing fail-safe battery management systems, and mechanical engineers are building complex cooling and fire suppression systems. A common rule… Read more »
LG Chem to license Optodot’s boehmite ceramic-coated battery separators
Optodot Corporation has granted a license to LG Chem for batteries, cells, separators and electrolyte members comprising boehmite, an aluminum oxide hydroxide mineral. The license permits LG Chem to use boehmite separator films for lithium-ion batteries. “Boehmite ceramic coating layers offer a number of distinct benefits in lithium-ion batteries, including improved thermal stability to enhance… Read more »
Elon Musk: Tesla is tracking 60 battery development efforts around the world
Tesla CEO Elon Musk covers a lot of ground in a recent interview with Investment icon Ron Baron. He explains how, as a young man, he identified the five tech areas that would have the greatest impact on mankind’s future, and set out to make his mark. He also gives propers to early partner AC… Read more »
Tesla tweaks its battery chemistry: a closer look at silicon anode development
In mid-July, Tesla Motors made a trio of Model S update announcements. The new options included a 70 kWh rear-wheel-drive base model, an upgrade for the high-end battery pack from 85 to 90 kWh (providing about a 6% increase in range), and Ludicrous mode, which offers a 10% improvement in the car’s 0 to 60… Read more »
Beating the polysulfide shuttle to build a solid-state battery approaching theoretical capacity
The latest advance in lithium-sulfur technology comes courtesy of a research team from Samsung and the University of Rome, who have built a solid-state Li-S battery with a capacity (∼1600 mAhg−1) approaching the theoretical value and Coulombic efficiency approaching 99%. In a paper published in the Journal of The Electrochemical Society, the team concludes that… Read more »
Fuji Pigment develops new type of aluminum-air battery
Metal-air battery technology could offer very high energy density, and is considered a promising candidate for “beyond Li-ion” next-generation batteries. Aluminum, which is abundant and cheap, is a likely anode material. Aluminum-air batteries have a theoretical specific energy of up to 8.1 kWh/kg, second only to lithium-air batteries (13.0 kWh/kg). A pioneer in the aluminum-air… Read more »
Membrane technology and the importance of venting EV electronics
Protecting a car’s sensitive electronics throughout its lifetime is a must, whether it’s a conventional ICE vehicle or an EV. However, the larger electronics in plug-in vehicles have more power, more heat and higher pressure differentials that present new technological challenges to OEMs and suppliers. Any power semiconductor inevitably generates heat while conducting current, due… Read more »
CalBattery’s new SiGr anode material hopes to break the battery bottleneck
California Lithium Battery took advantage of national and local government programs so it could focus on its revolutionary silicon-graphene anode material. Now with EV, electronics, and energy storage customers lining up, it hopes to break the battery bottleneck. When you think about a bottleneck, you think about constriction – something that moves in a particular… Read more »
Webinar: Real-time location accurate within centimeters for wireless EV charging and other automotive applications
Real-Time Location Accurate Within Centimeters Made Possible With Murata’s LF Antennas. The need for accurate position information is growing and there are several communication systems and protocols to choose from for your application. UWB has recently become popular since it was adopted by Apple and supported in the iPhone. However, it is not without its… Read more »
