08-29-2016, 12:53 AM
Spun-out from the MIT in 2012, startup SolidEnergy Systems has developed advanced electrolyte materials which it combines to produce lithium metal batteries with twice the energy density of today's lithium ion batteries, while being safe and long-lasting. Because the new battery design only uses an ultra-thin lithium metal anode (shrinking the battery drastically by not having to rely on bulky Li-ion intercalation compounds such as graphite), the company describes these Gen 3 Li-Metal batteries as ‘anode-free’.
MIT spin-out shrinks lithium batteries | Electronics EETimes
Scientists have known for decades that lithium-metal batteries offer a powerful combination of energy density and compactness. Unfortunately these batteries also present challenges: they are difficult to recharge and they have an unfortunate tendency to burst into flame. Boston-based startup SolidEnergy Systems, spun out of the MIT lab of Donald Sadoway in 2012, claims to have solved these problems with a novel anode structure and hybrid electrolyte. Qichao Hu, SolidEnergy’s founder, first showed a prototype last fall that is half the size of an iPhone 6 battery and offers more battery life per charge. The company says it will sell batteries for smartphones by early next year, and for electric vehicles in 2018. First, though, it’s going after a more specialized market: drones.
Better Lithium Batteries to Get a Test Flight
Among the 100 new products the company founder wants to invent by 2020, the greatest investment in people and money is to improve rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, as reported by Forbes. And Dyson is not planning incremental improvements. His opinion is that current Li-ion batteries don’t last long enough and aren’t safe enough — the latter as evidenced by their propensity to spontaneously catch on fire, which is rare but does happen. Dyson believes the answer lies in using ceramics to create solid-state lithium-ion batteries. Dyson says he intended to spend $1.4 billion in research and development and in building a battery factory over the next five years. Last year Dyson bought Ann Arbor, Michigan-based Sakti3, which focuses on creating advanced solid-state batteries, for $90 million. The global lithium-ion battery market accounts for $40 billion in annual sales, according to research firm Lux as cited by Forbes.
Dyson Vacuum Company Wants To Make Better Batteries | Digital Trends