While lithium-ion batteries present the most dominant rechargeable battery on the market, their limited energy density (energy stored per unit volume), high cost and safety problems drives various research groups to invent a battery with better performance. Stanford University researchers have developed an advanced zinc-air battery which could serve low-cost alternative to conventional lithium-ion batteries…. »
Researchers from the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, which is operated by the Stanford University, managed to set a world record for energy storage in the sulfur cathode of a rechargeable lithium-ion battery. They came up with a novel “yolk-shell” design which enables these batteries to store five times more energy compared to current commercially available… »
Alongside the usual news and articles about breakthroughs in energy storage and generation, there were many breakthroughs in materials science and biomedicine during the last year. Development of 3D chips is gaining its momentum, and there are many attempts to utilize low-value materials that were usually discarded after some other production process, as well as… »
We often cover breakthroughs in energy storage technology since there is a growing need for usage of stored power with our gadgets and electric vehicles. A team of researchers from SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, which is operated by Stanford University for the U.S. Dept. of Energy Office of Science, created a double-walled nanostructure which increases… »
IBM Research started the Battery 500 Project to develop lithium-air battery technology that could be used to power a family-sized electric car for approximately 500 miles (800 km) on a single charge back in 2009. The project has recently got additional support from Asahi Kasei and Central Glass – two companies with decades of experience… »
A team of researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory, discovered that nanotubes composed of titanium dioxide can switch their phase as a battery is cycled, gradually boosting their operational capacity. Laboratory tests showed that batteries produced with this material could be recharged up to half of their original capacity in less… »
Lithium-ion batteries have found use in various portable devices, but their storage capacity limits the usability of those gadgets. As we mentioned in a couple of our previous articles, we need a new battery systems capable to charge faster and store more energy. Researchers from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) found a potential solution… »
A multidisciplinary team of researchers from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) has been inspired by the way water is transported in trees and they used the same physicochemical effect to develop a faster way to fill the porous electrodes of lithium-ion batteries with liquid electrolyte. Aside lowering the time needed for battery consumption, the… »
