Batteries Charge Quickly and Retain Capacity, Thanks to New Structure

[Croc]

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/03/110320164225.htm

Braun's group wraps a thin film into three-dimensional structure, achieving both high active volume (high capacity) and large current. They have demonstrated battery electrodes that can charge or discharge in a few seconds, 10 to 100 times faster than equivalent bulk electrodes, yet can perform normally in existing devices. This kind of performance could lead to phones that charge in seconds or laptops that charge in minutes, as well as high-power lasers and defibrillators that don't need time to power up before or between pulses.

Braun is particularly optimistic for the batteries' potential in electric vehicles. Battery life and recharging time are major limitations of electric vehicles. Long-distance road trips can be their own form of start-and-stop driving if the battery only lasts for 100 miles and then requires an hour to recharge.

"If you had the ability to charge rapidly, instead of taking hours to charge the vehicle you could potentially have vehicles that would charge in similar times as needed to refuel a car with gasoline," Braun said. "If you had five-minute charge capability, you would think of this the same way you do an internal combustion engine. You would just pull up to a charging station and fill up."

Ummmmmm...COOL!!

[Drew Dowdell]

but I've been told that there won't be any more major advances in battery technology and the EVs we have today have the same range and recharge rates as the ones that will be in the market in 10 years.

[siegen]

There are literally hundreds of new technologies with exciting laboratory demonstrations that all promise to revolutionize our vehicles. The question is, which ones will actually take hold in the market? It takes more than a hop, skip and a jump to go from a laboratory experiment to a mass-produced, durable, easy to manufacture, and cost-effective technology. If it ends up costing too much, it won't make it off the ground.

The 10-year estimate is probably realistic.

Nova has some very interesting shows on new technologies specifically relevant to EVs. There is a guy working on a process for cooking chicken feathers to create nano-scale fibers that, when used in a hydrogen tank, allow hydrogen to be stored at far lower pressures and more densely-packed for smaller hydrogen tanks (or longer range). There is some very interesting solar technologies being worked on too. It all looks really great in the lab and it makes you ask why a lot of it hasn't taken off in the market already. But if the market doesn't run with it, there's probably a good reason (cost, complexity, etc).

[PurdueGuy]

Problem:

Long-distance road trips can be their own form of start-and-stop driving if the battery only lasts for 100 miles and then requires an hour to recharge.

What car has a 100 mile range and fully charges in an hour? Nothing worth driving. Nissan Leaf is 7-8 hours on 220. This article is hopeful for a 5 minute charge. That's 84 times faster. Granted, that's within the 10-100 times better than current tech range they claim, but reality rarely sees the result (at least at a marketable price) at the upper end of early bragging & hopes of such things. If it can result in a charge time that's twice as fast, that would be huge, and maybe that's something we can hope for. Any claims more than that, and I'll have to see it to believe it, especially at a cost that's able to be used in cars that can be priced for regular consumers.

[Croc]

Problem:

Long-distance road trips can be their own form of start-and-stop driving if the battery only lasts for 100 miles and then requires an hour to recharge.

What car has a 100 mile range and fully charges in an hour? Nothing worth driving. Nissan Leaf is 7-8 hours on 220. This article is hopeful for a 5 minute charge. That's 84 times faster. Granted, that's within the 10-100 times better than current tech range they claim, but reality rarely sees the result (at least at a marketable price) at the upper end of early bragging & hopes of such things. If it can result in a charge time that's twice as fast, that would be huge, and maybe that's something we can hope for. Any claims more than that, and I'll have to see it to believe it, especially at a cost that's able to be used in cars that can be priced for regular consumers.

Economies of scale will drive the costs down, as will industry standardization. Hybrid technologies are so expensive partially because everything is still proprietary, though they have really come down in cost over the past decade. Also, this is a new battery technology that seems to combine two technological improvements: capacity and charge/discharge speed. Regarding the last one, I read an article a few years ago about a breakthrough in batteries that allowed them to behave more like capacitors, so this one doesn't surprise me too much.

I'd give it 7-10 years, assuming the oil lobby doesn't stymie the effort.

[A Horse With No Name]

Bingo on the oil lobby thing....but yea...given ten years...major changes.

Thanks for posting this, croc!

[Croc]

Bingo on the oil lobby thing....but yea...given ten years...major changes.

Thanks for posting this, croc!

Fer sher. I'd love to shift the energy debate away from cars and towards the production of electricity part of the equation.

By the way, anyone know of a green energy company that pays a dividend as nice as Exxon? I inherited some and I would love nothing more than to dump it, but unfortunately I need the money for now...This would not be a gamble, I want a low-risk, consistent-yield stock.

[CSpec]

Bingo on the oil lobby thing....but yea...given ten years...major changes.

Thanks for posting this, croc!

By the way, anyone know of a green energy company that pays a dividend as nice as Exxon? I inherited some and I would love nothing more than to dump it, but unfortunately I need the money for now...This would not be a gamble, I want a low-risk, consistent-yield stock.

The price of a stock is just the present value of its future dividends. It's actuarially equivalent whether you sell it or hold it, unless you don't trust yourself with a big pile of cash. Also I'm not aware of any green technology that isn't risky, unless one becomes an arm of the taxpayer.

As for this battery technology, The Economist wrote about it this week. Sounds very promising. It looks like usable electric drive and self-driving technology will converge! The automotive future is bright. It will be a fine day indeed when I can be whisked along in a silent car, taking a nap in the driver's seat.