Electric vehicles (EVs) have brought revolutionary changes to the automotive industry and are expected to achieve sustainable development and reduce carbon emissions in the future. As electric vehicles gain popularity, one of the major challenges they face is charging speed and battery life, which are critical to consumer acceptance and widespread adoption of electric vehicles.
Now, researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory are advancing the development of fast charging for electric vehicles (EVs). A team of battery scientists recently developed a lithium-ion battery material that can not only charge to 80% capacity in 10 minutes, but also maintain that ability for 1,500 charge cycles.
ORNL researcher Zhijia Du inserts a newly developed liquid electrolyte material into a battery bag cell. This formulation extends the life of ultra-fast charging batteries, such as those used in electric vehicles. Image credit: Genevieve Martin/ORNL, U.S. Department of Energy
When a battery is working or charging, ions move between the electrodes through a medium called an electrolyte. A team led by ORNL's Zhijia Du developed a new formula of lithium salts and carbonate solvents to form an electrolyte that maintains good ion mobility over the long term and performs well when large currents are used to heat the battery during extreme fast charging.
Project partners tested battery bag cells manufactured at ORNL's battery manufacturing facility to demonstrate the battery's safety and cycling characteristics.
"We found that this new electrolyte formulation essentially triples the Department of Energy's extreme fast-charge battery life goals," Du said.