With Tesla’s recent purchase of Maxwell
Technologies, I thought it was a perfect time to take a closer look at the current state
of batteries and what could be next. As well as what supercapacitors are, why so
many people are excited by them, and a wonder material that could change ... everything. So we’re all familiar with lithium ion batteries. They power pretty much everything in our lives
at this point from the cellphone in your pocket, to your laptop, smart watch, wireless earphones,
remote controls, electric vehicles, and more. But when did they become a thing? John Goodenough is recognized as the inventor
of the lithium-cobalt-oxide cathod in 1980, which was then introduced to the world by
Sony in 1991. Ever since then lithium ion batteries have
become the standard for powering almost all mobile consumer electronics. The same thing that makes them so efficient
and versatile is also the thing that can make them dangerous. We’ve all seen the reports of what can happen
when a lithium ion battery goes bad. A lithium ion battery is made up of a positive
and negative side. The positive is the cathode, which is most
often made up of lithium cobalt oxide; and the negative is the anode, which is made up
of carbon (most often graphite). Graphite is going to make a reappearance a
little later. The use of graphite helps to produce a flat
voltage curve on discharge. And the reason lithium is used is that it’s
the lightest metal and also can absorb a lot of electrons. Those two sides are submerged in a liquid
electrolyte and are separated by a micro perforated separator, which only allows ions to pass
through. When the battery charges, the ions pass from
the cathode to the anode. When the battery discharges, the ions flow
in reverse back to the cathode. Every time you use your cellphone and recharge
it, those ions are flowing back and forth with each cycle. The reason a battery can explode is that metal
can build up during this process on the cathode side and slowly create stalactite like growths,
which are known as dendrites, and those can extend and puncture the separator ... and
that is when you get exploding batteries. So as great as lithium batteries are at giving
us all of the amazing mobile technologies that power our lives, it has some dangerous
downsides if they aren’t properly engineered or are dropped, punctured or otherwise not
properly cared for. Not to mention the downsides of mining for
lithium and cobalt, which have impacts on the environment, and in some cases human rights
abuses in some mines. That leads me to Maxwell Technologies innovation
that probably lead them to getting purchased by Tesla: dry battery electrodes. This shouldn’t be confused with solid state
batteries, which is something I’ll cover later. Dry battery electrodes is an innovation in
the manufacturing process of the anode and cathode that doesn’t require any liquid
solvent in the process. Usually the materials are sprayed on with
solvents that then have to be dried or baked off. The solvents and process create off gassing
and pollution, so Maxwell’s dry electrode process actually improves the ecological side
of battery production. But the biggest benefits are around energy
density, battery life, and cost. Batteries using this method show greater than
300 Wh/kg with a path to over 500 Wh/kg. By comparison, Tesla’s current battery technology,
which is considered one of the highest densities available today, is believed to be around
230 Wh/kg. That means this technique could add about
23% to Tesla’s current battery density with room to double it. This could lead to vehicles with significantly
more range. The batteries are also showing improved durability
with battery life almost doubling. Companies like Tesla typically warranty their
batteries for 10 years. Again, this could lead expected battery pack
longevity to be much, much longer. And finally, another big reason that Tesla
probably purchased Maxwell, the cost reduction. Since this process doesn’t require large
drying areas, there’s a 16x production capacity density increase, and 10-20% cost reduction
vs. the wet electrode method. Bottom line: it’s going to be cheaper to
manufacture better batteries. And that brings us to solid state batteries and the race to bring them to market. The basic format of a solid state battery
is just like a lithium ion battery. You have a cathode and anode in an electrolyte,
but instead of a liquid ... it’s a solid. I’m sure you didn’t see that one coming. The exact chemistry and materials used is
where there’s a race between various researchers and companies. Here in Massachusetts is one of those companies,
Ionic Materials (https://ionicmaterials.com). They have working prototypes of a solid state
battery that they’re trying to bring to market. Without a liquid electrolyte, they’re exceptionally
safe and don’t explode when compromised. You can drive a nail through a solid state
battery like this, or even cut it in half as it’s being used and it will still continue
to work. No fire. No explosion. They also have higher energy densities than
standard lithium ion batteries, which means you can use much smaller batteries to achieve
the same power storage on products that we have today. Smaller batteries means fewer materials and
lower production costs. And this is where John Goodenough makes a
reappearance with co-author Maria Helena Braga and their “glass battery.” At 95 years old John Goodenough is still researching
battery chemistries to replace lithium ion batteries with something better, faster, safer,
and ecologically sound. The glass battery doesn’t use cobalt, and
lithium could eventually be replaced with easily accessible sodium. That means these batteries could be biodegradable
at some point. And as you probably guessed from the nickname,
it’s using a glass electrolyte. They can last for more than 23,000 charge
and discharge cycles, which is more than a minor improvement over several thousand for
a typical lithium ion cell. There’s still some debate from battery researchers
around Goodenough and Braga’s findings, but Goodenough’s credentials as one of the
inventors of lithium ion batteries add a lot of credibility to the findings So with major advancements like that in lithium
battery production, we’re done right? Problem solved. Not exactly. Lithium batteries offer tremendous amounts
of energy density, but they’re not great at power density. If you need a huge burst of power, say for
an EVs acceleration or a grid scale battery system reacting to sudden demand, lithium
ion battery's aren’t the best option. This is where super capacitors come in since
they have a huge power density. Where batteries are a slower electrochemical
reaction that generates electricity, super capacitors are electrostatic ... it’s basically
static electricity. A conventional capacitor is made up of two
conductive materials separated by a thin insulating material. Apply a current and a positive charge builds
up on one side, and a negative charge on the other. No electrolytes needed, which makes them safer
and more durable. They’re also able to transfer massive amounts
of power almost instantly, which is more appropriate for something like an EV and would allow for
charging in seconds. And they have a much greater recharge cycle
lifespan than batteries. The reason we don’t use capacitors though
is that they don’t have a good energy density. The current technology can only hold about
10 Wh/kg, or about 5% of a typical lithium ion battery. You would need an absolutely massive super
capacitor pack to equal what you get in a relatively small lithium ion battery pack. If only we could combine super capacitor power
with lithium ion battery energy density. Imagine what we could do then. You knew where I was going with that, right? This is where the “wonder material” makes
its introduction. Say hello to graphene. Graphene is a thin crystalline layer of carbon,
at one atom thick. The best way to think of it is that it’s
essentially an ultra thin layer of graphite ... I told you graphite would make a reappearance,
so get your number 2 pencils ready. What makes graphene different is that its
atoms are arranged in a honeycomb pattern. A one atom thick honeycomb pattern. This makes graphene not only an amazing two
dimensional object, but also one of the strongest materials ever known. This one atom thick material is 100 times
stronger than steel. Research is showing that it could be the next
silicon helping to create faster electronics, dramatically more efficient solar panels,
and could even become one of the best ways to purify water. It really is earning the “wonder material”
nickname. Highly conductive, strong, flexible, and transparent,
it has a multitude of possible uses that could revolutionize pretty much everything. And that leads me to the potential future
of a supercapacitor made from graphene that has the qualities of energy dense batteries
with the immense power capabilities of capacitors. A recent breakthrough at the v[9] has created
a 3D printed graphene aerogel scaffold that was loaded with a capacitive material into
that scaffolding, and achieved the most energy storage ever in a capacitor. Imagine phones, laptops, and cars able to
charge in seconds to a few minutes, and virtually no degradation from the recharge cycles. Lithium ion batteries may be the reigning
champion, but supercapacitors may eventually replace all batteries as we know them. This wasn’t a comprehensive list of all
of the different technologies and research being done into energy storage. There’s a lot more out there like flow batteries,
fuel cells, and more, but when you focus in on just a couple of areas you can see how
quickly things are changing. We’re not going to have cellphones that
can charge in seconds in the next few years, as much as we might want them, but you can
see what might be a little further down the road. There’s not a straight path from here to
there, but there are important incremental updates being made along the way, like Maxwell
Technologies dry battery electrodes. If you’re someone who knows about these
technologies or research, please share any details I missed or that could clarify things
further in the comments. And if you liked this video, be sure to give
it a thumbs up and comment whether you think supercapacitors are going to become the new
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Slick video, shame about all the errors
LCO isnt used in the majority of liion cells
Lithium dendrites grow from anode
Then I got bored a minute or so in.. Shame I don't have a face for youtube