Will electric cars be much cheaper? Scientists have created a revolutionary battery

A new type of electrolyte discovered by Chinese scientists will reduce the price of solid-state batteries by as much as 90%. And they will not require expensive lithium for production.

The new battery uses a new solid sulfide electrolyte called LPSO, which does not require lithium sulfide. As a result, the battery, developed by the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC), performs comparable to competing types of next-generation batteries at a cost of less than 10 percen of previous ones. The invention of a new solid electrolyte that eliminates the need for expensive lithium sulfide will enable enormous advances in battery design.

How do the new batteries work

According to Chinese media, this brings the country closer to its goal of leading the race for supremacy in battery technology. Unlike traditional ones, which use liquid or gel polymer electrolytes for ion conduction between electrodes, solid electrolytes are used in solid-state batteries. Solid-state batteries are expected to solve all current capacity and safety problems.

Solid-state batteries can use oxides or sulfides as the cathode to increase energy density. Due to their excellent performance, sulfides are usually considered the most promising option for the future practical application of all-solid-state batteries, but their high cost has been a barrier so far.

The cost of solid sulfide electrolytes typically exceeds $195 per kilogram, well above the $50 threshold. per kilogram necessary for general use. The cost challenge arises from the complex electrolyte synthesis process, which relies heavily on expensive Li2S. "Although researchers around the world are trying to reduce costs through various methods, long-term studies have shown that achieving this goal is difficult," UTSC researcher Ma Cheng told Science and Technology Daily.

How to lower battery prices

The novel electrolyte is synthesized from two inexpensive compounds, which reduces the cost of the ingredient to only $14.42 per kilogram, which is less than 8%. cost of raw materials for the production of other solid sulfide electrolytes.

Interestingly, LPSO retains the key advantages of the most effective sulfide electrolytes, including anode compatibility that ensures operational stability. It combines well with high energy density anodes such as lithium metal and silicon. The battery made of LPSO and lithium metal demonstrated over 4,200 hours of stable operation at room temperature.

Despite these promising results, Ma emphasized that the team expects further performance improvements and the team is actively working to achieve them.

Leading car manufacturers are working on new battery technologies. Last year, Toyota announced new solid-state battery technology for electric vehicles that would enable it to halve cost, weight and size.

Scientists from the American university Cornell have developed a breakthrough battery that not only charges in record time, but can also be much smaller than those currently used.

The world's largest automaker said it could produce batteries with a range of 745 miles (1,200 km) and a short charging time of about 10 minutes thanks to its new solid-state battery architecture. The company announced that it will start producing cars equipped with new battery technology in 2027.”