Exposing cathodes to light decreases charge time by a factor of two in lithium-ion batteries.
Researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory have reported a new mechanism to speed up the charging of lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles. Simply exposing the cathode to a beam of concentrated light — for example, the white light from a xenon lamp — lowers the battery charging time by a remarkable factor of two or more. If commercialized, such technology could be a game changer for electric vehicles.
Owners of electric vehicles are well aware of “range anxiety” as the charge level runs low or the location of the closest charging station seems too distant. Fast charging remains a critical challenge if such vehicles are ever to capture a large segment of the transportation market. Charging for an electric car on empty typically takes about eight hours.
“We wanted to greatly shorten this charge reaction without damaging the electrodes from the resulting higher current flow.” — Christopher Johnson, Argonne Distinguished Fellow
Special supercharging stations now exist that achieve ultrafast charging of electric vehicles by delivering a much higher current to the battery. Passing too much current over too short a time, however, degrades battery performance.
Typically, lithium-ion batteries for vehicles are slowly charged to obtain a complete electrochemical reaction. This reaction involves removing lithium from the oxide cathode and inserting it into the graphite anode.
“We wanted to greatly shorten this charge reaction without damaging the electrodes from the resulting higher current flow,” said Christopher Johnson, Argonne Distinguished Fellow and group leader in the Chemical Sciences and Engineering division.
Today’s lithium-ion batteries work in a dark state, with the electrodes housed in a case. Argonne’s photo-assisted technology would use a transparent container that allows concentrated light to illuminate the battery electrodes during charging.
To probe the charge process, the research team crafted small lithium-ion cells (“coin cells”) with transparent quartz windows. They then tested these cells with and without white light shining through the window onto the cathode.
?“We hypothesized that, during charging, white light would interact favorably with the typical cathode material, and that proved to be the case in our cell tests,” Johnson said. That cathode material is a lithium manganese oxide, abbreviated as LiMn2O4 (LMO).
The key ingredient in this favorable reaction is the interplay of light with LMO, a semiconducting material known to interact with light. While absorbing the photons in the light during charging, the element manganese in the LMO changes its charge state from trivalent to tetravalent (Mn3+ to Mn4+). In response, lithium ions eject faster from the cathode than would occur without the photon-excitation process.
This condition drives the battery reaction faster. The team found that the faster reaction resulted in faster charging without degrading battery performance or cycle life. ?“Our cell tests showed a factor of two decrease in charging time with the light turned on,” Johnson said.
Learn more: Shedding new light on the charging of lithium-ion batteries
The Latest on: Battery charging
[google_news title=”” keyword=”battery charging” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
via Google News
The Latest on: Battery charging
- The Worst Charging Mistakes To Make On Your iPhone That Are ‘Ruining’ Your Device's Battery Health: Using Cheap Charging Accessories & Moreon May 18, 2024 at 3:34 am
One too many charging mistakes on your iPhone can add up — and have negative consequences on your phone’s battery. If you’ve been a little “casual” with your phone charging routine lately and are ...
- GM EV Home Charging Products Comparedon May 18, 2024 at 1:32 am
GM has introduced several home charging solutions to ensure convenient and efficient charging for its EV owners, as outlined in the following comparison.
- What Happens When a Rivian EV Runs Out of Battery Charge?on May 17, 2024 at 4:59 pm
We ran our R1T pickup truck's battery pack completely empty and things didn't go well at all.More than any other concern they may have about EVs, most folks want to know what'll happen when one runs ...
- China Dominance Fears Over Electric Car Battery That Charges In 10 Minuteson May 17, 2024 at 3:22 pm
The Shenxing battery, developed by Chinese company CATL, uses lithium iron phosphate (LFP) technology and can provide a range of 250 miles after just 10 minutes of charging. An even newer version of ...
- China’s first large-scale sodium-ion battery charges to 90% in 12 minuteson May 17, 2024 at 2:55 pm
China's first major sodium-ion battery energy storage station is now online, according to China Southern Power Grid Energy Storage.
- China develops revolutionary electric car battery that can charge in 10 minuteson May 17, 2024 at 4:35 am
China has developed a revolutionary car battery that can charge in just 10 minutes and power a car for hundreds of miles before it needs to be plugged in.
- Man arrested on aggravated battery charge after fighton May 16, 2024 at 9:06 am
South Jacksonville police have arrested a man on a felony battery charge after a pregnant woman reported being assaulted.
- Kymco unveils e-scooter with integrated charging and battery swappingon May 16, 2024 at 12:47 am
In a bold move to cater to the evolving energy needs of consumers, Kymco has launched its first electric scooter series featuring the Ionex BMU battery metering module, which integrates both charging ...
- Apple's New iPad Air, iPad Pro Get Battery Health Menu That Limits Charging to 80 Percent: Reporton May 15, 2024 at 5:56 am
Apple unveiled the iPad Air with M2 chip and iPad Pro models with M4 chips at its Lets Loose event last week. The iPad Air is released in 10.9-inch and 13-inch display options with a Liquid Retina ...
- iPads finally get battery health info and adaptive charging, but only the new oneson May 14, 2024 at 6:55 pm
You can get to the new menu on iPad by going to Settings > Battery > Battery Health, which will also provide datapoints for charge cycle count, the date the battery was manufactured, and when the ...
via Bing News