The team observed that the aluminum anode could store more lithium than conventional anode materials, and therefore more energy. In the end, they had created high energy density batteries that could potentially outperform lithium-ion batteries.
Today, a paper is being published that appears to offer a low price combined with a big boost in several of those measures. The aluminum-sulfur batteries it describes offer low-priced raw materials, competitive size, and more capacity per weight than lithium-ion—with the big plus of fully charging cells in far less than a minute.
IEA analysis based on data from Bloomberg and Bloomberg New Energy Finance Lithium-Ion Price Survey (2023). “Battery pack price” refers to the volume-weighted average pack price of lithium-ion batteries over all sectors. Price of selected battery materials and lithium-ion batteries, 2015-2024 - Chart and data by the International Energy Agency.
Nature Communications, 2023; 14 (1) DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-39685-x Georgia Institute of Technology. "Aluminum materials show promising performance for safer, cheaper, more powerful batteries." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 19 July 2023. < / releases / 2023 / 07 / 230719150013.htm>.
The idea of making batteries with aluminum isn’t new. Researchers investigated its potential in the 1970s, but it didn’t work well. When used in a conventional lithium-ion battery, aluminum fractures and fails within a few charge-discharge cycles, due to expansion and contraction as lithium travels in and out of the material.
When used in a conventional lithium-ion battery, aluminum fractures and fails within a few charge-discharge cycles, due to expansion and contraction as lithium travels in and out of the material. Developers concluded that aluminum wasn’t a viable battery material, and the idea was largely abandoned.