Good news! Potentially, a breakthrough!
"Researchers at Australia's Monash University are close to solving one of the biggest challenges with eVTOL aircraft. The team's new lithium-sulfur battery tech is designed to deliver roughly twice the energy density of lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries, as well as speedy charging and discharging – enabling the sort of power delivery needed in the skies. ..."
"Monash University engineers have developed an ultra-fast charging lithium-sulfur (Li-S) battery, capable of powering long-haul EVs and commercial drones. ...
“Inspired by the chemistry of betadine, a common household antiseptic, we found a way to accelerate the charge and discharge rates, making them a viable battery option for real-world heavy-duty use,” ...
In an electric car, the Li-S batteries could power an extra 1000 kilometres on a single charge while cutting recharge time to a few hours. ...
“Our catalyst has significantly enhanced the C-rate performance of Li-S batteries, demonstrated in early proof-of-concept prototype cells. With commercial scaling and larger cell production, this technology could deliver energy densities up to 400 Wh/kg.”
“This makes it well-suited for applications requiring dynamic performance, such as aviation, where batteries must handle high C-rates during take-off and efficiently switch to low C-rates during cruising.”
Li-S batteries are also a greener alternative to the materials used in traditional Li-ion batteries, which rely on limited and often environmentally harmful resources like cobalt.” ..."
From the abstract:
"Lithium–sulfur (Li–S) batteries are considered as a viable technology offering energy-dense electrochemical energy storage systems. However, the inherently slow reaction kinetics manifested in the slow charge and discharge characteristics constrain their real-world applications. Here, it is reported that polyiodide species held within a complex polar network of polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) accelerate the rate-limiting solid-liquid phase transitions both in the reduction and oxidation steps during battery cycling. Density functional theory calculations support a mechanism in which a combination of enhanced binding of polysulfides and additional energy states in the PVP-iodine-polysulfide complexes accelerates the reaction pathways mediated by inter-valance polyiodide reactions within the working voltage of Li–S batteries. These studies show that PVP-iodine (PVP-I) complexes enhance the rate capability of cells with practical sulfur loadings delivering a high areal capacity of ≈7 mAh cm−2 at the practical 0.5C rate. This advantage is demonstrated in one of the highest-rate pouches reported in Li–S literature, attaining energy densities of 215 and 156 Wh kg at 0.1C and 0.3C, respectively. The results demonstrate a subtle but powerful shift in the design of molecular binder systems, which have functional roles above and beyond the role of simply holding the active materials together."
Electric aircraft on the horizon as Monash commercialises rapid-charge lithium-sulfur battery technology (original news release)
Role of Polymer-Iodine Complexes on Solid-Liquid Polysulfide Phase Transitions and Rate Capability of Lithium Sulfur Batteries (no public access)
Unlike Li-ion batteries, Li-S batteries use inexpensive Sulfur as a cathode material. Yes, it's cheaper - but this tech also brings drawbacks like fewer charge cycles and slow charging
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