Sol: Scientists have found a way to match the performance and capacity of eco-friendly batteries to those found in electric vehicles and smartphones.
The scientists’ breakthrough could help accelerate the commercialization of batteries based on organic electrodes. These batteries are cheaper and more environmentally friendly than standard lithium-ion batteries.
According to the research paper, the cheapness and natural abundance of organic electrodes in lithium-ion batteries underlines their importance.
Dissolution of the active materials in the electrolyte is a major obstacle to their use in lithium-ion batteries, the paper reported.
A team of researchers from South Korea’s Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) and Hanyang University attempted to address limitations related to organic electrode materials in the study.
Previously, these batteries lost more than 50 percent charging capacity after 20 charging cycles, but using the new technique, with the help of diluted electrodes, the battery was able to retain more than 91 percent charging capacity even after 1,000 charging cycles.
Professor Won-Jin Kwak of UNIST said that this research is a big step towards the use of batteries made from organic electrodes.