Photo of safely stored liquid fuel. I mention this so that people don't lose track of the dangers.
Posted on 04/06/2015 1:10:36 PM PDT by Red Badger
Stanford University scientists have invented the first high-performance aluminum battery that's fast-charging, long-lasting and inexpensive. Researchers say the new technology offers a safe alternative to many commercial batteries in wide use today. "We have developed a rechargeable aluminum battery that may replace existing storage devices, such as alkaline batteries, which are bad for the environment, and lithium-ion batteries, which occasionally burst into flames," said Hongjie Dai, a professor of chemistry at Stanford. "Our new battery won't catch fire, even if you drill through it."
Dai and his colleagues describe their novel aluminum-ion battery in "An ultrafast rechargeable aluminum-ion battery," in the April 6 advance online edition of the journal Nature.
Aluminum has long been an attractive material for batteries, mainly because of its low cost, low flammability and high-charge storage capacity. For decades, researchers have tried unsuccessfully to develop a commercially viable aluminum-ion battery. A key challenge has been finding materials capable of producing sufficient voltage after repeated cycles of charging and discharging.
Graphite cathode
An aluminum-ion battery consists of two electrodes: a negatively charged anode made of aluminum and a positively charged cathode.
"People have tried different kinds of materials for the cathode," Dai said. "We accidentally discovered that a simple solution is to use graphite, which is basically carbon. In our study, we identified a few types of graphite material that give us very good performance."
For the experimental battery, the Stanford team placed the aluminum anode and graphite cathode, along with an ionic liquid electrolyte, inside a flexible polymer- coated pouch.
"The electrolyte is basically a salt that's liquid at room temperature, so it's very safe," said Stanford graduate student Ming Gong, co-lead author of the Nature study.
Aluminum batteries are safer than conventional lithium-ion batteries used in millions of laptops and cell phones today, Dai added.
"Lithium-ion batteries can be a fire hazard," he said.
As an example, he pointed to recent decisions by United and Delta airlines to ban bulk lithium-battery shipments on passenger planes.
"In our study, we have videos showing that you can drill through the aluminum battery pouch, and it will continue working for a while longer without catching fire," Dai said. "But lithium batteries can go off in an unpredictable manner - in the air, the car or in your pocket. Besides safety, we have achieved major breakthroughs in aluminum battery performance."
One example is ultra-fast charging. Smartphone owners know that it can take hours to charge a lithium-ion battery. But the Stanford team reported "unprecedented charging times" of down to one minute with the aluminum prototype.
Durability is another important factor. Aluminum batteries developed at other laboratories usually died after just 100 charge-discharge cycles. But the Stanford battery was able to withstand more than 7,500 cycles without any loss of capacity. "This was the first time an ultra-fast aluminum-ion battery was constructed with stability over thousands of cycles," the authors wrote.
By comparison, a typical lithium-ion battery lasts about 1,000 cycles.
"Another feature of the aluminum battery is flexibility," Gong said. "You can bend it and fold it, so it has the potential for use in flexible electronic devices. Aluminum is also a cheaper metal than lithium."
Applications
In addition to small electronic devices, aluminum batteries could be used to store renewable energy on the electrical grid, Dai said.
"The grid needs a battery with a long cycle life that can rapidly store and release energy," he explained. "Our latest unpublished data suggest that an aluminum battery can be recharged tens of thousands of times. It's hard to imagine building a huge lithium-ion battery for grid storage."
Aluminum-ion technology also offers an environmentally friendly alternative to disposable alkaline batteries, Dai said.
"Millions of consumers use 1.5-volt AA and AAA batteries," he said. "Our rechargeable aluminum battery generates about two volts of electricity. That's higher than anyone has achieved with aluminum."
But more improvements will be needed to match the voltage of lithium-ion batteries, Dai added.
"Our battery produces about half the voltage of a typical lithium battery," he said. "But improving the cathode material could eventually increase the voltage and energy density. Otherwise, our battery has everything else you'd dream that a battery should have: inexpensive electrodes, good safety, high-speed charging, flexibility and long cycle life. I see this as a new battery in its early days. It's quite exciting."
More information: An ultrafast rechargeable aluminum-ion battery, DOI: 10.1038/nature14340
This is an interesting article. Though I’ve learned to take a wait and see approach when it comes to new battery chemestries.
I need the next battery up from those- just checked em online at amazon- they are now $169 per battery- I shoot landscapes, with 2 second delay, mirror up etc- and I can get perhaps 6 hours or so (perhaps about 40-60 shots or so) before I need to recharge my battery
Would be nice to at least get a couple of days before needing a recharge (Note, I can shoot for days, perhaps a week, maybe a bit more, if I’m just shooting normal, ie no mirror lockup, no LCD screen, no 2 second timer)
I don’t do much video- but I’m sure it’s a massive drain o n the battery-
the LCD screen, really eats up the power as well..
I don’t use the camera for video ordinarily. and only once used it for anything I kept.
dont feel bad about the pricing....I need a new battery for my bike,...and they want 900 bucks for that
And only in Chevy Volts.
That’s amazing!
What’s that come to?
400 or 600 miles an hour?
The Chevy Volt fire scare turned out to be baloney. The fire only happened three weeks after the Volt was crash tested and only because the battery was not de-energized afterwards (kind of like how you would drain a leaking gas tank after a crash).
NHTSA Closes Chevy Volt Battery-Pack Fire Safety Investigation
Photo of safely stored liquid fuel. I mention this so that people don't lose track of the dangers.
Sounds impressive but I wonder what the catch is.
That’s not a photo of safely stored anything.
I mention that so people don’t lose track of facts.
[[and they want 900 bucks for that]]
Geeez- what’s it made of? Platinum?
One would think so. The battery powers a 48 volt motor..and with the increased amp hours..the new ones..are supposed to get 40 miles...without peddling.
“That’s not a photo of safely stored anything. I mention that so people don’t lose track of facts.”
It’s a photo of a ‘formerly safely stored liquid’ that you referenced.
Okay.
and how long do they hold a charge with no interaction.
IOW charge the car and leave it for a couple of weeks or month and it works just fine.
also.
250? a modern car, not ecconobox, goes for about 350 to 400 miles...
How long does it take to fill a gasoline/diesel tank? That is the real measure.
That time plus 350 mile range to next convenient refill.
“How long does it take to fill a gasoline/diesel tank? That is the real measure. That time plus 350 mile range to next convenient refill.”
My wife just left to gas up her car. Estimated time: 30 minutes.
If it were electric, she could have plugged it in last night. Estimated time: 30 seconds.
not very practical to be chained to a limited travel radium.
So your wife ONLY travels within a finite radius of your house?
Imagine what happens with auto-drive cars where you can go from A to B without TSA in the comfort of your own vehicle and whims.
And (to keep you on track):
Liquid fuel gives >350 mile range, with re-charge in less than 5 minutes.
THAT is the primary goal for any other vehicular energy storage method. Until the "alternative" energy vehicle can meet or exceed that standard, it will NOT be competitive with liquid fuel.
“So your wife ONLY travels within a finite radius of your house?”
Yes. Just saying. If she had an electric car it would save her over 25 hours a year in lost time filling up. That is a full day.
“No ... it’s a photo of the results of improperly storing liquid fuel.”
I am glad you believe that additional safeguards should be implemented concerning storage of gasoline.
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