Only a fairy tale tells itself quickly. It became known about the American company Enevate, which was developing lithium-ion batteries with silicon anodes. The new technology promised increased energy storage density and fast charging. Since then, technology has continued to improve and the shores are already visible. There are no more than 5 years left before the practical introduction of new batteries.
ΠΠ°ΠΊ IEEE Spectrum website with a link to Enevate, large manufacturers in the automotive industry, in particular Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi, as well as battery manufacturers LG Chem and Samsung, became interested in the companyβs battery technology. All of them are investors in Enevate. The development of the technology began about 10 years ago. If it appears in cars, as promised, in 2024β2025, then the path from the project to its implementation will be 15 years.
By the way, Enevateβs advisory board includes 2019 Chemistry Award: John Goodenough, who received the prestigious award for his achievements in the development of lithium-ion batteries. He was involved in the development of Enevate's battery technology long before he received this award, so at Enevate he is not playing the role of a βwedding generalβ, but getting down to business. And, to be honest, after the prize is awarded, it gives the company much more weight in the eyes of investors.
The idea behind Enevate is to create an anode primarily from . Silicon can store ions to record energy storage densities and do so much faster than anodes made from other materials (with the possible exception of the more expensive graphene). The Enevate lithium-ion battery charges up to 75% of its capacity in 5 minutes. It also has 30% more energy reserve than modern lithium-ion batteries. The company declares this parameter at 350 Wh/kg. Theoretically, an electric vehicle powered by Enevate batteries could travel 400 km after charging the battery for 5 minutes.
The secret of the Enevate battery lies in the special anode structure. The silicon layer in the anode has a thickness of 10 to 60 microns and is unusually porous. This increases both ion mobility in the anode and energy storage density. Also, the porous structure stops the destructive processes in silicon that occur during the charging and discharging of batteries.
In addition, the silicon layer of the anode is protected on both sides by a layer of graphite. Graphite prevents destructive contact of silicon with the electrolyte. The main disadvantage of Enevate batteries was the rapid destruction of the silicon anode layer. So, after the first charge and discharge cycle, the battery lost 7% of its capacity. The porous structure of the silicon anode layer is designed to overcome this drawback, but how much the company has improved the number of charge and discharge cycles is not specified. Let's hope the company takes the promised four or five years to bring the technology to commercial production.
Source: 3dnews.ru