The Driven

A team of Australian researchers have developed new battery production methods that promise longer lasting batteries that could be used to boost the range of electric vehicles substantially.

In research published in the journal Science Advances, the Monash University led team applied techniques originally developed in the processing of detergent powders to discover a method of making more durable batteries using lithium-sulfur materials.

The researchers at Monash University think that using the new method can greatly improve the stability of the lithium-sulfur batteries that promise greater energy storage densities, and could unlock the production of higher performance and longer lasting battery systems.

Previous attempts to produce batteries using the lithium-sulfur materials, while offering greater energy storage densities, suffered from degradation in performance as the materials broke down under stress.

The Monash University research team has developed a new method to process the lithium-sulfur materials that provide a significant improvement in the stability of the materials.

The researchers predict the use of lithium-sulfur batteries could see a substantial increase in the range of electric vehicles, with the potential for new batteries to provide more than 1000km of driving range.

The battery technology could be used in a wide range of applications, including consumer products like phones.

The research was led by Monash University’s Dr Mahdokht Shaibani, who worked with an international research team on the development of the high capacity lithium-sulfur battery design. The research team intends to test working examples of the innovative battery design in electric vehicles and with solar energy systems throughout 2020.

Leading battery manufacturers in China and Europe have already expressed interest in producing the new battery innovation at large-scale.

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