Mit Battery Charging

Could a new MIT battery make electric cars more sustainable?

A new MIT battery material could offer a more sustainable way to power electric cars. Instead of cobalt or nickel, the new lithium-ion battery includes a cathode based on organic materials. In this image, lithium molecules are shown in glowing pink. Image: Courtesy of the researchers. Edited by MIT News.

Could a new lithium-ion battery make electric cars more sustainable?

MIT researchers have now designed a battery material that could offer a more sustainable way to power electric cars. The new lithium-ion battery includes a cathode based on organic materials, instead of cobalt or nickel (another metal often used in lithium-ion batteries).

Could a battery be a low-cost alternative to lithium-ion?

MIT engineers designed a battery made from inexpensive, abundant materials, that could provide low-cost backup storage for renewable energy sources. Less expensive than lithium-ion battery technology, the new architecture uses aluminum and sulfur as its two electrode materials with a molten salt electrolyte in between.

Could a battery cathode reduce EV reliance on scarce metals?

Image: Courtesy of the researchers. Edited by MIT News. MIT chemists developed a battery cathode based on organic materials, which could reduce the EV industry’s reliance on scarce metals. Many electric vehicles are powered by batteries that contain cobalt — a metal that carries high financial, environmental, and social costs.

Can aluminum-sulfur batteries be used for electric car charging stations?

For that invention, Sadoway was recently awarded this year’s European Inventor Award. The smaller scale of the aluminum-sulfur batteries would also make them practical for uses such as electric vehicle charging stations, Sadoway says.

What is a molten salt battery?

The new battery architecture, which uses aluminum and sulfur as its two electrode materials, with a molten salt electrolyte in between, is described today in the journal Nature, in a paper by MIT Professor Donald Sadoway, along with 15 others at MIT and in China, Canada, Kentucky, and Tennessee.