British Researchers Make Lighter, Cheaper, Longer Lithium-oxygen Batteries

Aaron Cole
by Aaron Cole

Researchers at the University of Cambridge say they’ve created a lighter, cheaper, longer lithium-oxygen battery that could eventually rival gasoline engines in electric vehicles in terms of range and weight, Automotive News reported.

The scientists announced that they had created a working prototype of an “ultimate battery” that could be up to 10 times more energy-dense than lithium-ion batteries. They said the battery, to date, could be recharged more than 2,000 times.

The lithium-oxygen batteries could eventually replace lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles and offer a range similar to gasoline engines, but researchers say that could be more than a decade away.

“What we’ve achieved is a significant advance for this technology and suggests whole new areas for research — we haven’t solved all the problems inherent to this chemistry, but our results do show routes forward towards a practical device,” Professor Clare Grey said in a statement announcing the battery.

According to researchers, the demonstration lithium-oxygen battery still presents significant real-world hurdles including only cycling in a pure oxygen atmosphere.

“There’s still a lot of work to do,” Tao Liu, said in a statement. “But what we’ve seen here suggests that there are ways to solve these problems — maybe we’ve just got to look at things a little differently.”

Executives a t Volkswagen and Toyota have said that lithium-oxygen batteries could be significant for EV development, which could enable those cars to increase their ranges by hundreds of miles.

(Photo: Microscopic view of a graphene oxide electrode (black) that hosts the larger lithium hydroxide particles (pink) that form with a lithium-oxide battery discharges. Illustration by Valerie Altounian/Science)


Aaron Cole
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  • FalconRTV FalconRTV on Nov 01, 2015

    So Volkwagen's version will do hundreds of miles more? Are those VW miles, or real miles?

  • Lorenzo Lorenzo on Nov 02, 2015

    More baby steps with so far to go. Wake me when they come up with di-lithium crystals.

    • Art Vandelay Art Vandelay on Nov 02, 2015

      This will happen when automotive glass is replaced with transparent aluminum.

  • The Oracle Well, we’re 3-4 years in with the Telluride and right around the time the long term durability issues start to really take hold. This is sad.
  • CoastieLenn No idea why, but nothing about a 4Runner excites me post-2004. To me, they're peak "try-hard", even above the Wrangler and Gladiator.
  • AZFelix A well earned anniversary.Can they also attend to the Mach-E?
  • Jalop1991 The intermediate shaft and right front driveshaft may not be fully engaged due to suspected improper assembly by the supplier. Over time, partial engagement can cause damage to the intermediate shaft splines. Damaged shaft splines may result in unintended vehicle movement while in Park if the parking brake is not engagedGee, my Chrysler van automatically engages the parking brake when we put it in Park. Do you mean to tell me that the idjits at Kia, and the idjit buyers, couldn't figure out wanting this in THEIR MOST EXPENSIVE VEHICLE????
  • Dukeisduke I've been waiting to see if they were going to do something special for the 60th Anniversary. I was four years old when the Mustang was introduced. I can remember that one of our neighbors bought a '65 coupe (they were all titled as '65 models, even the '64-1/2 cars), and it's the first one I can remember seeing. In the '90s I knew an older gentleman that owned a '64-1/2 model coupe with the 260 V8.
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