Lithium-Sulphur Batteries are getting closer to reality

Lithium-Sulphur Batteries are getting closer to reality

Most of today’s electric cars are powered by Lithium-Ion batteries, these batteries will also be used to store the suns energy, on a cloudy or rainy day. The quest of the battery scientist is to create a battery that will cover longer distances and store more of the suns power, created by solar panels and wind power.

This is where the Lithium-Sulphur battery will in the future have a part to play. At the moment (Jan 2014) the Li-Su battery does not have a good life span and cannot be used commercially, but an anode that has been developed Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) could make it possible for the life of the Li-Su battery to be extended enough to make it a viable option to be used in a commercial environment, increasing the present battery life by as much as four times.

The Li-Su battery would have a much bigger advantage over the Li-On batteries, because the Li-On is limited to how much energy it can store, the Li-Su battery can hold more than four times more energy mass, which would significantly increase the length of the distance than an electric car can cover at the moment, and also have much more storage capacity from solar energy.

As I have said, the problem with the Li-Su battery model has been the short life span of the battery, which is mainly due to the dissolution of the cathode that contains the sulphur into the batteries electrolyte which ends up forming unwanted molecules known as “polysulphides”. These polysulfide’s form an unwanted deposit on the surface of the Lithium anode which is non-conductive, causing the battery not to work.

The challenge of the scientists at the PNNL team focused on the battery's other side by adding a protective shield to the anode. The new protective shield for the anode has been developed from graphite. Graphite is one of the rare earth products that is mined in huge quantities in China, and in smaller amounts else ware on the Planet. This type of graphite carbon molecule is also used in Li-On batteries and I believe it was first discovered in Manchester University in the UK... http://www.pellonautocentre.com/blog/?p=4229

In the newly designed anode the very thin layer of carbon is connected to the Lithium metal by using an electrical method thus forming a unique electrochemical formation. The graphite shield prevents the build-up of the un-wanted molecules of polysulphides, thus solving the longevity problem that was caused by the former chemical action.

Larger models of the Lithum-Sulphur batteries would have to be tested

The outcome of this is that the new anode has increased the lifespan of the battery up to four times and has increased the charging/discharging from 100 to 400 times, now making this new style anode into a much more viable proposition for commercial use, after further development. This development would include the use of thicker electrodes that would be required for the use on electric cars and solar storage and indeed tests would still have to be carried on larger models of the new technology and so the good work goes on.

Eric Roberts

Hi I would like to introduce myself. I have worked in the Garage and tyre and Battery business now for 40 years. I have worked for a couple for national tyre companies in my younger days, before starting my first business. I now own a garage and MOT testing centre, here in the UK called Pellon Tyre and Auto-centre, and I am a keen blogger about anything to do with cars and their related products that will help my business. We are members of Point-S and Motor-Codes and are also a Unipart Car Care Centre and of course Tyre-safe.