Lithium-oxygen technology sets off a battery revolution -Lithium - Ion Battery Equipment
From the cell phone in your pocket to the car on the road, almost everything with an electrical circuit requires a battery. While the rest of the tech industry has grown rapidly over the past few decades, batteries have made slow progress.
In today's transportation, energy, infrastructure and other fields, insufficient battery has become the biggest bottleneck. Our energy needs continue to grow, but the amount of energy we can carry and store is limited. Smartphones struggle to last a day, electric cars have less range on a single charge than cars and diesel cars, and storing energy from a source such as a solar panel is quite difficult.
We desperately need breakthroughs in energy storage, and many companies, including oil majors, are developing new technologies. Once successful, it could be a hugely lucrative market, but unfortunately there are limitations in the chemistry of batteries that are difficult to overcome.(Lithium - Ion Battery Equipment)
The big question is energy density: how much energy can be stored within a specific volume and weight of storage unit. First introduced in 1991, lithium batteries have been used in cell phones, automobiles, and other rechargeable devices, and can store approximately 150 and 250 watt-hours (Wh/kg) per kilogram. For a better understanding, let’s take the analogy that a refrigerator consumes 1,600 watt-hours of electricity per day, and gasoline stores about 13,000 watt-hours per kilogram—50 times more than the best lithium-ion batteries.
There are also some batteries that use other metals or elements to form chemical reactions, such as sulfur or silicon, but it is difficult for researchers to increase energy density and meet safety requirements.
Lithium-air (or lithium-oxygen) batteries "breathe" oxygen from the air, which is used to form a chemical reaction that generates electricity, and existing batteries -- such as lithium-ion batteries -- store the oxide inside the battery. Because of this, the energy density of lithium-air batteries will be greatly improved, which is equivalent to gasoline. In theory, the energy density of lithium-air batteries is equivalent to 10 times that of current lithium batteries.
Kyeongjae Cho, a professor at the University of Texas at Dallas, believes that lithium-air batteries hold great promise. "While many groups around the world are actively researching, hope has not materialized in real life, and our research is an exciting advance," he said. His research focuses on electrolyte catalysts for lithium-air batteries, and traditional Compared with solid-state catalysts, the use of soluble catalysts can significantly improve the performance. "Hopefully our findings can revive research and build momentum for future development," KyeongjaeCho said.
According to reports, the cost and weight of the battery KyeongjaeCho researched is only one-fifth of the current battery, and the lithium-air battery can allow a car to drive 400 miles (about 644 kilometers) on a single charge and keep a mobile phone for a week. However, according to KyeongjaeCho, it is a bit difficult to increase the capacity of lithium-air batteries in practical applications. Although many large companies and universities are studying, the results are far from satisfactory. So far, batteries have suffered from low efficiency, poor rate performance, instability, and redundant chemical reactions.
Billy Wu said: "A lot of people are talking about metal-air systems, which are already on the horizon, but are more than 20 years away from commercial use."
In October last year, Dyson acquired SakTI3, a company specializing in the development of solid-state batteries, which have twice the energy density of lithium batteries. SakTI3 uses a solid polymer as the electrolyte, which can be charged faster.
Outside of the consumer realm, much research revolves around energy supply. Billy Wu said: "There is a problem with renewable energy, such as solar and wind, their energy is intermittent, sometimes it brings good energy, sometimes it is interrupted, so that the grid is not overloaded."
Storing energy in batteries might solve the supply problem. But for now, there are also limitations to storing such energy in large battery packs or at home — the same limitations as in consumer electronics. All the commercial battery companies can do is make the best use of lithium-ion cells.
A breakthrough in battery technology is coming, but the time is not yet ripe.
In today's transportation, energy, infrastructure and other fields, insufficient battery has become the biggest bottleneck. Our energy needs continue to grow, but the amount of energy we can carry and store is limited. Smartphones struggle to last a day, electric cars have less range on a single charge than cars and diesel cars, and storing energy from a source such as a solar panel is quite difficult.
We desperately need breakthroughs in energy storage, and many companies, including oil majors, are developing new technologies. Once successful, it could be a hugely lucrative market, but unfortunately there are limitations in the chemistry of batteries that are difficult to overcome.(Lithium - Ion Battery Equipment)
The big question is energy density: how much energy can be stored within a specific volume and weight of storage unit. First introduced in 1991, lithium batteries have been used in cell phones, automobiles, and other rechargeable devices, and can store approximately 150 and 250 watt-hours (Wh/kg) per kilogram. For a better understanding, let’s take the analogy that a refrigerator consumes 1,600 watt-hours of electricity per day, and gasoline stores about 13,000 watt-hours per kilogram—50 times more than the best lithium-ion batteries.
There are also some batteries that use other metals or elements to form chemical reactions, such as sulfur or silicon, but it is difficult for researchers to increase energy density and meet safety requirements.
Lithium-air (or lithium-oxygen) batteries "breathe" oxygen from the air, which is used to form a chemical reaction that generates electricity, and existing batteries -- such as lithium-ion batteries -- store the oxide inside the battery. Because of this, the energy density of lithium-air batteries will be greatly improved, which is equivalent to gasoline. In theory, the energy density of lithium-air batteries is equivalent to 10 times that of current lithium batteries.
Kyeongjae Cho, a professor at the University of Texas at Dallas, believes that lithium-air batteries hold great promise. "While many groups around the world are actively researching, hope has not materialized in real life, and our research is an exciting advance," he said. His research focuses on electrolyte catalysts for lithium-air batteries, and traditional Compared with solid-state catalysts, the use of soluble catalysts can significantly improve the performance. "Hopefully our findings can revive research and build momentum for future development," KyeongjaeCho said.
According to reports, the cost and weight of the battery KyeongjaeCho researched is only one-fifth of the current battery, and the lithium-air battery can allow a car to drive 400 miles (about 644 kilometers) on a single charge and keep a mobile phone for a week. However, according to KyeongjaeCho, it is a bit difficult to increase the capacity of lithium-air batteries in practical applications. Although many large companies and universities are studying, the results are far from satisfactory. So far, batteries have suffered from low efficiency, poor rate performance, instability, and redundant chemical reactions.
Billy Wu said: "A lot of people are talking about metal-air systems, which are already on the horizon, but are more than 20 years away from commercial use."
In October last year, Dyson acquired SakTI3, a company specializing in the development of solid-state batteries, which have twice the energy density of lithium batteries. SakTI3 uses a solid polymer as the electrolyte, which can be charged faster.
Outside of the consumer realm, much research revolves around energy supply. Billy Wu said: "There is a problem with renewable energy, such as solar and wind, their energy is intermittent, sometimes it brings good energy, sometimes it is interrupted, so that the grid is not overloaded."
Storing energy in batteries might solve the supply problem. But for now, there are also limitations to storing such energy in large battery packs or at home — the same limitations as in consumer electronics. All the commercial battery companies can do is make the best use of lithium-ion cells.
A breakthrough in battery technology is coming, but the time is not yet ripe.
