Lithium-ion

We got it wrong, folks. The Superbattery from Skeleton Technologies is not a hybrid battery/ultracapacitor energy system, it's an entire new type of cell that sits somewhere in between the two. And it will make it into EVs – just not how we expected.

French company Nawa technologies says it's already in production on a new electrode material that can radically boost the performance of existing and future battery types, delivering 3x the energy density, 10x the power, and vastly faster charging.

A new device from engineers at TU Delft overcomes some of the dependability issues of lithium-metal batteries thanks to a new electrolyte that breaks down and forms a key protective layer during charging.

Just because a lithium-ion battery no longer holds a charge doesn't mean it no longer holds any value. It still contains useful metals, which can now be reclaimed via a more eco-friendly technique – the key ingredient is orange peel waste.

Plans are afoot to build a monster battery cell production facility in the UK, but it's not going to another Tesla Gigafactory. Startup Britishvolt expects construction of its 30-GWh GigaPlant to start in Wales next year.

Carefully introducing new materials into the design of today’s lithium-ion batteries has the potential to greatly improve their performance, and scientists have just happened upon a promising possibility in carbon nanotubes.

Despite advances in new battery designs, good old lithium-ion batteries are still the frontrunner. There’s plenty of room for improvement though, and now researchers have identified a new cathode coating that could make them safer and longer lasting.

Researchers out of the Chinese University of Hong Kong have used a polymer commonly found in skin cream as a stabilizing agent for an aqueous lithium-ion battery, keeping costs and toxicity low and creating a stable voltage for common usage.

California's Enevate says it's managed not only to achieve an incredibly fast-charging solution for lithium-ion EV batteries, but one that handily boosts energy density as well. Using silicon anodes, it could give you 250 miles of range in 5 minutes.

A new ultrasound device developed at US San Diego offers a solution to a key roadblock when it comes to lithium metal batteries, by using sound waves as a way of preventing dangerous growths that cause them to catch fire and fail.

Described as a “dream material,” lithium metal could give lithium-ion batteries a huge boost but safely integrating it has proven problematic. Scientists have now come up with a new design that avoids these issues and stops it going up in flames.

Lithium-ion batteries degrade over time, but there are ways you can make them last longer. A team at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, has put together a list of best practices to preserve the life of lithium-ion batteries as long as possible.