The Argonne National Laboratory in the US has essentially cracked the battery technology for electric vehicles, discovering a way to raise the future driving range of standard EVs to a thousand miles or more. It promises to do so cheaply without exhausting the global supply of critical minerals in the process. <\/p>\n
The joint project with the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) has achieved a radical jump in the energy density of battery cells. The typical lithium-ion battery used in the car industry today stores about 200 watt-hours per kilo (Wh\/kg). Their lab experiment has already reached 675 Wh\/kg with a lithium-air variant.<\/p>\n
This is a high enough density to power trucks, trains, and arguably mid-haul aircraft, long thought to be beyond the reach of electrification. The team believes it can reach 1,200 Wh\/kg. If so, almost all global transport can be decarbonised more easily than we thought, and probably at a negative net cost compared to continuation of the hydrocarbon status quo. <\/p>\n
The Argonne Laboratory in Chicago is not alone in pushing the boundaries of energy storage and EV technology. The specialist press reports eye-watering breakthroughs almost every month. America, Europe, China and Japan are all in a feverish global race for battery dominance \u2013 or survival \u2013 and hedge funds are swarming over the field. <\/p>\n
Read it all<\/a>(registration or subscription).<\/p>\n The @argonne<\/a> National Laboratory and @illinoistech<\/a> have achieved a breakthrough in the energy density of battery cells that could push EVs beyond 1,000 miles on a charge, and potentially, eventually, power trucks, trains and mid-haul aircraft.https:\/\/t.co\/qZOFi28aOW<\/a><\/p>\n — Andrew Westrope (@andrew_westrope) March 8, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n \n