Dig into the prospects for sodium-based batteries in this story from last year. … Contact online >>
Dig into the prospects for sodium-based batteries in this story from last year.
Lithium-ion batteries are also finding new applications, including electricity storage
Solar energy storage is a key part of the clean energy puzzle.
The world is on track to install nearly 600 GW worth of solar power this year - 29 per cent more than last year even after unprecedented growth in 2023.
Making sure solar energy can be stored is key to taking the renewable to the next level, according to UK think tank Ember.
But - among other challenges - many batteries are made from unsustainable materials, and have a tendency to overheat.
In a "very exciting" development, researchers based at the Polytechnic University of Catalunya (UPC) have now tackled both issues with a unique hybrid device.
"I am very excited about this since we are demonstrating that it is possible to increase efficiency and add storage to photovoltaic systems," lead researcher professor Kasper Moth-Poulsen tells Euronews Green.
The device combines a silicon solar cell with a storage system called MOST, which stands for molecular solar thermal energy storage systems.
While working at Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, Moth-Poulsen used MOST to show that solar energy can be stored for 18 years.
The technology is based on a specially designed molecule of carbon, hydrogen and nitrogen that changes shape when it comes into contact with sunlight.
These are common elements - providing an alternative to other technologies relying on scarce materials like lithium.
When ultraviolet light shines on them, the organic molecules undergo a chemical transformation and store the energy for later use.
A unique feature of the system is that the molecules also provide cooling in the photovoltaic cell by acting as an optical filter, and blocking photons (light particles) that would normally cause heating.
Unsurprisingly, battery systems work more efficiently when they don''t get too hot.
The second, photovoltaic, part of the device - which converts solar energy into electricity - has also scored efficiency gains thanks to the cooling effect of the MOST system.
"With further development, it may be possible to develop this technology as a retrofit upgrade to existing solar cell installations," Moth-Poulsen says.
After this successful laboratory-scale demonstration, detailed in journal Joule, the researchers now have some engineering ahead to make the tech robust for long-term use. They also need to improve the materials production to lower the price.
"The systems are currently made in university laboratories - eventually we need to work together with partners on the scale up," he adds.
Albeit at an early stage, the researchers hope their hybrid invention will soon help reduce our reliance on fossil fuels, and minimise the environmental impact of other batteries.
Japan''s TDK is claiming a breakthrough in materials used in its small solid-state batteries, with the Apple supplier predicting significant performance increases for devices from wireless headphones to smartwatches.
The new material provides an energy density—the amount that can be squeezed into a given space—of 1,000 watt-hours per liter, which is about 100 times greater than TDK''s current battery in mass production. Since TDK introduced it in 2020, competitors have moved forward, developing small solid-state batteries that offer 50 Wh/l, while rechargeable coin batteries using traditional liquid electrolytes offer about 400 Wh/l, according to the group.
"We believe that our newly developed material for solid-state batteries can make a significant contribution to the energy transformation of society. We will continue the development towards early commercialisation," said TDK''s chief executive Noboru Saito.
The batteries set to be produced will be made of an all-ceramic material, with oxide-based solid electrolyte and lithium alloy anodes. The high capability of the battery to store electrical charge, TDK said, would allow for smaller device sizes and longer operating times, while the oxide offered a high degree of stability and thus safety. The battery technology is designed to be used in smaller-sized cells, replacing existing coin-shaped batteries found in watches and other small electronics.
The breakthrough is the latest step forward for a technology industry experts think can revolutionize energy storage, but which faces significant obstacles on the path to mass production, particularly at larger battery sizes.
Solid-state batteries are safer, lighter and potentially cheaper and offer longer performance and faster charging than current batteries relying on liquid electrolytes. Breakthroughs in consumer electronics have filtered through to electric vehicles, although the dominant battery chemistries for the two categories now differ substantially.
The ceramic material used by TDK means that larger-sized batteries would be more fragile, meaning the technical challenge of making batteries for cars or even smartphones will not be surmounted in the foreseeable future, according to the company.
Kevin Shang, senior research analyst at Wood Mackenzie, a data and analytics firm, said that "unfavorable mechanical properties," as well as the difficulty and cost of mass production, are challenges for moving the application of solid-state oxide-based batteries into smartphones.
Industry experts believe the most significant use case for solid-state batteries could be in electric cars by enabling greater driving range. Japanese companies are in the vanguard of a push to commercialize the technology: Toyota is aiming for as early as 2027, Nissan the year after and Honda by the end of the decade.
Car manufacturers are focused on developing sulfide-based electrolytes for long-range electric vehicles, an alternative kind of material to the oxide-based material that TDK has developed.
However, there is still skepticism about how quickly the much-hyped technology can be realized, particularly the larger batteries needed for electric vehicles.
Robin Zeng, founder and chief executive of CATL, the world''s biggest electric vehicle battery manufacturer, told the Financial Times in March that solid-state batteries did not work well enough, lacked durability and still had safety problems. Zeng''s CATL originated as a spin-off from Amperex Technology, or ATL, which is a subsidiary of TDK and is the world''s leading producer of lithium-ion batteries.
TDK, which was founded in 1935 and became a household name as a top cassette tape brand in the 1960s and 1970s, has lengthy experience in battery materials and technology.
It has 50 to 60 percent global market share in the small-capacity batteries that power smartphones and is targeting leadership in the medium-capacity market, which includes energy storage devices and larger electronics such as drones.
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As the world builds out ever larger installations of wind and solar power systems, the need is growing fast for economical, large-scale backup systems to provide power when the sun is down and the air is calm. Today''s lithium-ion batteries are still too expensive for most such applications, and other options such as pumped hydro require specific topography that''s not always available.
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