New Battery Tech Reduces Lithium Ion Battery Fires

University of Maryland researchers studying how lithium batteries fail have developed a new technology that could enable next-generation electric vehicles (EVs) and other devices that are less prone to battery fires while increasing energy storage.

The innovative method described in a paper published in the journal Nature, suppresses the growth of lithium dendrites – damaging branch-like structures that develop inside the described “all-solid-state” lithium batteries, preventing firms from broadly commercializing the promising solid state technology.

But this new design for a battery “interlayer,” led by Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Professor Chunsheng Wang, stops dendrite formation, and could open the door for production of viable all-solid-state batteries for EVs.

At least 750,000 registered EVs in the U.S. run on lithium-ion batteries – popular because of their high energy storage but containing a flammable liquid electrolyte component that burns when overheated.

While no government agency tracks vehicle fires by type of car, and electric car battery fires appear to be relatively rare, they pose particular risks; the National Transportation Safety Board reports that first responders are vulnerable to safety risks, including electric shock and the exposure to toxic gasses emanating from damaged or burning batteries.

All-solid-state batteries could lead to cars that are safer than current electric or internal combustion models, but creating a strategy to bypass the drawbacks was laborious, Wang noted.

When these batteries are operated at the high capacities and charging-discharging rates that electric vehicles demand, lithium dendrites grow toward the cathode side, causing short circuits and a decay in capacity.

Wang and Postdoctoral Associate Hongli Wan began to develop a theory for the formation of lithium dendrite growth in 2021; it remains a matter of scientific debate, the researchers said.

“After we figured out that part, we proposed the idea to redesign the interlayers that would effectively suppress the lithium dendrite growth,” Wang said.

Their solution is unique because of the stabilizing of the battery’s interfaces between the solid electrolyte and the anode (where electrons from a circuit enter the battery) and the electrolyte and the cathode (where energy flows out of the battery). The new battery structure adds a fluorine-rich interlayer that stabilizes the cathode side, as well as a modification of the anode’s interlayer with magnesium and bismuth – suppressing the lithium dendrite.

“Solid-state batteries are next-generation because they can achieve high energy and safety. In current batteries, if you achieve high energy, you’ll sacrifice safety,” said Wang.

Researchers have other challenges to solve before the solid state technology enters the market.

To commercialize all-solid-state batteries, experts will have to scale down the solid electrolyte layer to achieve a similar thickness to the lithium-ion batteries’ electrolyte, which will improve energy density – or how much power the battery can store.

High costs of basic materials are another challenge, the team said.

Aiming to release the new batteries to the market by 2026, advanced battery manufacturer Solid Power plans to begin trials of the new technology to assess its potential for commercialization. Continuing research aims to further boost energy density, the researchers said.

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Lithium solid state could very well be the next step in battery improvement. This research is already going into prototype testing, a defining mark in progress. There just might be a solid state lithium battery tech coming soon. Most likely in cell phones or other personal devices. That would make a fine mass market proving ground.

Next up could be a solid state lithium metal battery. Progress might speed up or slow as the market could contract from the power generation issues and grid capacity matters that consumers have realized are grave problems in the EV market.

But by no means have personal device sales drawn down. And there are lots of ideas about new products out there that could launch with an increase in power capacity and safety. EVs might have market circumstance problems but battery demand is going to grow anyway.

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