Posted on 04/09/2021 9:33:25 AM PDT by Red Badger
Moreover, it is safer in terms of potential fire hazards and has a lower environmental impact.
It is difficult to imagine our daily life without lithium-ion batteries. They dominate the small format battery market for portable electronic devices, and are also commonly used in electric vehicles. At the same time, lithium-ion batteries have a number of serious issues, including: a potential fire hazard and performance loss at cold temperatures; as well as a considerable environmental impact of spent battery disposal.
According to the leader of the team of researchers, Professor in the Department of Electrochemistry at St Petersburg University Oleg Levin, the chemists have been exploring redox-active nitroxyl-containing polymers as materials for electrochemical energy storage. These polymers are characterized by a high energy density and fast charging and discharging speed due to fast redox kinetics. One challenge towards the implementation of such a technology is the insufficient electrical conductivity. This impedes the charge collection even with highly conductive additives, such as carbon.
Looking for solutions to overcome this problem, the researchers from St Petersburg University synthesized a polymer-based on the nickel-salen complex (NiSalen). The molecules of this metallopolymer act as a molecular wire to which energy-intensive nitroxyl pendants are attached. The molecular architecture of the material enables high capacitance performance to be achieved over a wide temperature range.
‘We came up with the concept of this material in 2016. At that time, we began to develop a fundamental project “Electrode materials for lithium-ion batteries based on organometallic polymers”. It was supported by a grant from the Russian Science Foundation. When studying the charge transport mechanism in this class of compounds, we discovered that there are two keys directions of development. Firstly, these compounds can be used as a protective layer to cover the main conductor cable of the battery, which would be otherwise made of traditional lithium-ion battery materials. And secondly, they can be used as an active component of electrochemical energy storage materials,’ explains Oleg Levin.
The polymer took over three years to develop. In the first year, the scientists tested the concept of the new material: they combined individual components to simulate the electrically conducting backbone and redox-active nitroxyl-containing pendants. It was essential to make certain that all parts of the structure worked in conjunction and reinforced each other. The next stage was the chemical synthesis of the compound. It was the most challenging part of the project. This is because some of the components are extremely sensitive and even the slightest error of a scientist may cause degradation of the samples.
Of the several polymer specimens obtained, only one was found to be sufficiently stable and efficient. The main chain of the new compound is formed by complexes of nickel with salen ligands. A stable free radical, capable of rapid oxidation and reduction (charge and discharge), has been linked to the main chain via covalent bonds.
‘A battery manufactured using our polymer will charge in seconds – about ten times faster than a traditional lithium-ion battery. This has already been demonstrated through a series of experiments. However, at this stage, it is still lagging behind in terms of capacity – 30 to 40% lower than in lithium-ion batteries. We are currently working to improve this indicator while maintaining the charge-discharge rate,’ says Oleg Levin.
The cathode for the new battery has been fabricated – a positive electrode for use in chemical current sources. Now we need the negative electrode – the anode. In fact, it does not have to be created from scratch – it can be selected from the existing ones. Paired together they will form a system that, in some areas, may soon supersede lithium-ion batteries.
‘The new battery is capable of operating at low temperatures and will be an excellent option where fast charging is crucial. It is safe to use – there is nothing that may pose a combustion hazard, unlike the cobalt-based batteries that are widespread today. It also contains significantly less metals that can cause environmental harm. Nickel is present in our polymer in a small amount, but there is much less of it than in lithium-ion batteries,’ says Oleg Levin.
Reference: “The Fast and the Capacious: A [Ni(Salen)]‐TEMPO Redox‐Conducting Polymer for Organic Batteries” by Anatoliy A. Vereshchagin, Dr. Daniil A. Lukyanov, Ilia R. Kulikov, Dr. Naitik A. Panjwani, Dr. Elena A. Alekseeva, Prof. Jan Behrends and Prof. Oleg V. Levin, 17 November 2020, Batteries and Supercaps. DOI: 10.1002/batt.202000220
Hopefully, this will prove to be successful.
Then we can go to lots of electric cars.
Oops, that’s after we improve our grid.
And get reliable generating capacity (e.g., NOT solar & wind).
And harden the grid against solar (and Chinese) EMP.
Hmmmm, too bad we don’t have a government containing any folks who are actually capable of understanding science instead of screaming that we should ‘follow it’.
LOL - new battery. I’m positive that this announcement has been issued monthly for decades.
While many of these stories oversell and under-deliver on the promised technology, it is all but certain that we will see a huge leap in battery technology in the next few years. It is now one of the most studied fields of science because whomever finds the next great formula will reap the benefit.
It will be a game changer.
Don’t worry, Pete Buttigieg is on the case.
Yes they will. I expect the biggest impact to be in small aircraft, small drones, and personal electronics, not electric cars.
if we improve transmission (ie, wireless transmission) then new opportunities for generation (ie, hydro) become realistic...and with bitcoin mining at the source (ie, hydro), that operation becomes instantly profitable (ie, midstream and all of its infrastructure is eliminated), and new uses will move closer to the source of power generation (ie, data centers?)
and, if those new/better batteries become more mobile, then coupled with wireless transmission....we have something like a “mobile grid”....
perhaps the national security solution will eventually come with “micro grids”....not big vulnerable grids that need improving to your point
in any event....there’s a lot going on in the world and real possibilities
(at least I think so lol)
Imagine how useful small-scale nuclear reactors could be for solving those problems though.
I think the big money at the outset will be in consumer electronics, but the real game changer will be in large capacity storage for transportation and electrical grids.
This opens the door to all kinds of possibilities.
I have to admit.... I have been blessed to drive a lot of high-dollar sportscars, some with insane power. The new Tesla is INCREDIBLE.
The performance is stunning and it is the smoothest vehicle imaginable. I am a well reformed “environmentalist” who has spent decades studying the subject and my natural tendency was to hate electric cars because of the politics of the subject and government subsidies, but driving the Tesla completely changed my opinion about those vehicles.
From a pure performance metric minus the issue of “range” they are a winner.
Always wondered what powered Richard Scarry’s pickle cars....
Will it cost 20x a regular battery?
Enough already with these “super fantastic” battery breakthroughs. Been reading these regularly for years and years and yet never see anything hit the market.
Aren’t most polymers made from crude oil? Crude oil is evil. We can’t use it or we all will die. /s
What model specifically?
“Part of 2-part request.”
What about emissions. Are the electric power plants less polluting per kwh than cars? I don’t mean nuclear.
An earlier post mentioned the pollution resulting from the manufacture of batteries. The cars’ emission footprint needs to be added to that.
Yawn....undoubtedly battery technology will continue to improve...the elephant in the room is where is all the energy going to come from to charge all the batteries? It won’t be wind and solar or more hydro...converting one type of energy source to another is not 100% efficient...so probably 10% or more of the energy is lost during transformation...right now we have coal(on the way out), nuclear(not favored) and petroleum (hated by the rats and greenies)...so what’s left....cold fusion?....or horse and buggy 19th century existence....
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