“A car equipped with a lithium metal battery would have twice the range of a lithium-ion vehicle of equal size – 600 miles per charge versus 300 miles, for example,” said co-lead author Philaphon Sayavong, a PhD student in chemistry. “In EVs, the goal is to keep the battery as lightweight as possible while extending the vehicle range.”
Innovations to improve lithium-ion EV batteries, and new tech like solid state batteries, could take the range of electric cars past gasoline vehicles - and enable ultra-fast charging. Electric car batteries have a lot of conflicting demands.
Lithium metal batteries can hold at least a third more energy per pound as lithium-ion. “A car equipped with a lithium metal battery would have twice the range of a lithium-ion vehicle of equal size – 600 miles per charge versus 300 miles, for example,” said co-lead author Philaphon Sayavong, a PhD student in chemistry.
Lithium-ion batteries are the standard in EV manufacturing, but the median driving range for a fully charged Li-ion vehicle actually dropped in 2021 to only 234 miles. Superior energy density in lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries is seen as a replacement that could boost range up to five times to around 1,000 miles.
Berlin startup Theion says its Li-S battery will use only sulfur, graphene, and lithium instead of Li-ion’s mix of more expensive metals that include nickel, cobalt, manganese, copper, and aluminum. Mainstream electric cars fitted with its battery could achieve around 900 miles on a single charge.
Invented in the 1980s, lithium-ion batteries are now the mainstay of energy storage for small electronic devices or large electric vehicles. Even renewable energy storage banks on lithium-ion batteries due to their superior energy density and storage capacity.