Researchers have developed a new lithium ion battery that has a life span of over 20 years. No, we're not pulling your leg.
Not only do these batteries last a long time, but they are also incredibly fast to charge. From empty they will get up to 70% charge in only two minutes.
The lithium-ion batteries found in our smartphones and tablets currently last around 500 recharge cycles, which results in a battery lifespan of around two years of typical use, a battery taking on average two hours to be fully charged.
Longer lasting, quicker to charge
The new batteries developed by Nanyang Technology University will last up to 10,000 charging cycles.
The researchers achieved this by using a new gel material made from titanium dioxide for the anode (negative pole) of the battery rather than the standard graphite.
The titanium dioxide gel (which is both safe and cheap) is transformed into minuscule nanotubes, which are a thousand times thinner than the diameter of a human hair.
This speeds up the battery's chemical reactions for faster charging, as well as prolonging the lifespan of the battery.
The inventor of the new batteries, Associate Professor Chen Xiaodong, hopes that these superfast charging batteries will make it to the market in the next two years.
As well as faster charging, the other benefits of these long life batteries include less waste from dumping dead batteries, and longer lifespans for devices that have non-removable batteries, such as the iPhone 6.
While it would be great to see these new batteries in handheld devices, the key focus of these batteries at the moment is for electric vehicles. Which is still pretty awesome.
- Speaking of which, have you met the new Tesla D?
Via Engadget
