A team of battery researchers led by Cengiz Ozkan, professor of mechanical engineering, and Mihri Ozkan, professor of electrical engineering at UC Riverside.
UCR researchers are turning glass bottles into high performance lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles and personal electronics
Researchers at the University of California, Riverside’s Bourns College of Engineering have used waste glass bottles and a low-cost chemical process to create nanosilicon anodes for high-performance lithium-ion batteries. The batteries will extend the range of electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, and provide more power with fewer charges to personal electronics like cell phones and laptops.

Titled “Silicon Derived from Glass Bottles as Anode Materials for Lithium Ion Full Cell Batteries,” an article describing the research was published today in the Nature journal Scientific Reports. Cengiz Ozkan, professor of mechanical engineering, and Mihri Ozkan, professor of electrical engineering, led the project.
Even with today’s recycling programs, billions of glass bottles end up in landfills every year, prompting the researchers to ask whether silicon dioxide in waste beverage bottles could provide high purity silicon nanoparticles for lithium-ion batteries.
Silicon anodes can store up to 10 times more energy than conventional graphite anodes, but expansion and shrinkage during charge and discharge make them unstable. Downsizing silicon to the nanoscale has been shown to reduce this problem, and by combining an abundant and relatively pure form of silicon dioxide and a low-cost chemical reaction, the researchers created lithium-ion half-cell batteries that store almost four times more energy than conventional graphite anodes.
To create the anodes, the team used a three-step process that involved crushing and grinding the glass bottles into a fine white power, a magnesiothermic reduction to transform the silicon dioxide into nanostructured silicon, and coating the silicon nanoparticles with carbon to improve their stability and energy storage properties.
As expected, coin cell batteries made using the glass bottle-based silicon anodes greatly outperformed traditional batteries in laboratory tests. Carbon-coated glass derived-silicon ([email protected]) electrodes demonstrated excellent electrochemical performance with a capacity of ~1420 mAh/g at C/2 rate after 400 cycles.
Changling Li, a graduate student in materials science and engineering and lead author on the paper, said one glass bottle provides enough nanosilicon for hundreds of coin cell batteries or three-five pouch cell batteries.
“We started with a waste product that was headed for the landfill and created batteries that stored more energy, charged faster, and were more stable than commercial coin cell batteries. Hence, we have very promising candidates for next-generation lithium-ion batteries,” Li said.
This research is the latest in a series of projects led by Mihri and Cengiz Ozkan to create lithium-ion battery anodes from environmentally friendly materials. Previous research has focused on developing and testing anodes from portabella mushrooms, sand, and diatomaceous (fossil-rich) earth.
Learn more: Making Batteries From Waste Glass Bottles
[osd_subscribe categories=’batteries’ placeholder=’Email Address’ button_text=’Subscribe Now for any new posts on the topic “BATTERIES’]
The Latest on: Batteries
- Switzerland's new energy asset: hydro plant with capacity to charge 400,000 car batteries
Switzerland is adding a much needed cog in the wheel to its energy supply with an underground hydropower plant that says it has capacity to store enough electricity to charge 400,000 car batteries ...
- How Anker found billions in batteries and chargers
Though many people recognize Anker as a significant name in the world of charging cords and battery packs, few realize just how large a company Yang has created. Driving the news: Anker now makes a ...
- Solid Power: A Cheaper QuantumScape Building Solid State Batteries For The Future
Solid Power is developing solid-state batteries and is backed by Ford and BMW. See why I'd recommend SLDP only as a buy for extremely speculative investors.
- What If You Never Had To Buy Batteries Again? Try Energizer’s $8 Battery Charger and Find Out
What if we told you there’s a way to alleviate that expense with a? And, what if we told you that you can purchase said battery charger for just $7.99 today? We Loved Testing Bowflex's Adjustable ...
- Army ground vehicle lab researches different batteries in quest for electrified fleet
Battery research programs at the Army's Ground Vehicle System Center will help the Army's transition to hybrid and electric vehicles allowing quieter, longer duration operations.
via Google News and Bing News