Close X
Saturday, November 30, 2024
ADVT 
Tech

Coming Soon, lighter batteries with more life

Darpan News Desk IANS, 28 Jul, 2014 07:42 AM
    You may soon be able to have a cell phone with double or triple the battery life as researchers have taken a big step towards accomplishing what battery designers have been trying to do for decades - design a pure lithium anode.
     
    All batteries have three basic components: an electrolyte to provide electrons, an anode to discharge those electrons, and a cathode to receive them.
     
    What we call lithium batteries today do not have lithium in the anode. An anode of pure lithium would be a huge boost to battery efficiency.
     
    "Of all the materials that one might use in an anode, lithium has the greatest potential. Some call it the Holy Grail," said Yi Cui, a professor of material science and engineering at Stanford University in the US.
     
    "It is very lightweight and it has the highest energy density. You get more power per volume and weight, leading to lighter, smaller batteries with more power," Cui added.
     
    But engineers have long tried and failed to reach this Holy Grail.
     
    Researchers say that lithium's expansion during charging is "virtually infinite" relative to the other materials.
     
    Its expansion is also uneven, causing pits and cracks to form in the outer surface, like paint on the exterior of a balloon that is being inflated.
     
    The resulting fissures on the surface of the anode allow the precious lithium ions to escape, forming hair-like or mossy growths, called dendrites. Dendrites, in turn, short circuit the battery and shorten its life.
     
    To solve these problems the researchers built what they call nanospheres, a protective layer of interconnected carbon domes on top of their lithium anode.
     
    Made of amorphous carbon, the nanosphere is chemically stable, yet strong and flexible so as to move freely up and down with the lithium as it expands and contracts during the battery's normal charge-discharge cycle.
     
    The study appeared in the journal Nature Nanotechnology.

    MORE Tech ARTICLES

    Japan home to world's most sophisticated toilets

    Japan home to world's most sophisticated toilets
    Japan is home to the world's most sophisticated toilets, with consumers being able to choose from gold-plated and aquarium-equipped models, as well as one commode that gives the user the feeling of being a ski jumper.

    Japan home to world's most sophisticated toilets

    Forget speed, this device can detect alcohol in moving cars

    Forget speed, this device can detect alcohol in moving cars
    Breath alcohol testers or breathalysers that traffic police use to check your bubbly quotient when you drive can soon be things of the past. No, don't feel excited yet.

    Forget speed, this device can detect alcohol in moving cars

    Soon, electric wires to charge your cars, phones

    Soon, electric wires to charge your cars, phones
    So far, electric cables have been used only to transmit electricity. But soon, you will be able to power your mp3 player, smartphone and electric car from cables that can store energy.

    Soon, electric wires to charge your cars, phones

    Why not copy-print humans on other planets?

    Why not copy-print humans on other planets?
    What if, instead of sending humans to other planets, we made an exact copy on the site and colonised other planets to ensure survival of the human race for eons?

    Why not copy-print humans on other planets?

    This Korean sprinter robot can beat Usain Bolt!

    This Korean sprinter robot can beat Usain Bolt!
    South Korean scientists have taken inspiration from the prehistoric Velociraptor dinosaur to create one of the world's simplest and fastest robots - the Raptor.

    This Korean sprinter robot can beat Usain Bolt!

    Green tea daily reduces pancreatic cancer risk

    Green tea daily reduces pancreatic cancer risk
    The cup of your favourite green tea is full of health benefits and now researchers have found that an active compound in green tea also reduces the risk of pancreatic cancer.

    Green tea daily reduces pancreatic cancer risk