People don’t ask too much from batteries: Deliver energy when it’s needed and for as long as it is wanted, recharge quickly and don’t burst into flames. A rash of cell phone fires in 2016 jolted consumer confidence in lithium-ion batteries, a technology that helped usher in modern portable electronics but has been plagued by safety concerns since it was
MIT Researchers have devised a new pulsed laser deposition technique to produce thinner lithium electrolytes using less heat. According to the researchers, the use of thinner lithium electrolytes could allow faster charging and might lead to higher-voltage solid-state lithium-ion batteries. Key to the new processing technique for the solid-state battery electrolyte is alternating layers of the active electrolyte lithium garnet component
Toyota has been slower to embrace electric cars than other automakers, but the Japanese giant may soon catch up. Plans to introduce more electric cars and a potentially game-changing battery technology have been accelerated, Toyota recently announced. A goal to sell 5.5 million electrified vehicles has been moved up by five years, from 2030 to 2025. Toyota’s definition of “electrified” includes
There are currently great hopes for solid-state batteries. They contain no liquid parts that could leak or catch fire. For this reason, they do not require cooling and are considered to be much safer, more reliable, and longer lasting than traditional lithium-ion batteries. Scientists have now introduced a new concept that allows currents up to ten times greater during charging and discharging than previously described in the literature.