The glass battery is a kind of solid-state battery.
Now, what is a solid-state battery? Let’s get to the details.
First, we are going to get some idea about the issues of conventional batteries.
Dangerous Batteries, Problematic Batteries
A battery typically has two metals: one that gives up electrons (called an anode), and the other takes them (called the cathode). They are connected through an electrolyte— something that allows the electrons to move quickly.
Electrolytes are usually liquids or gels. Here comes the objection. It’s dangerous to keep a liquid-based battery in your laptop or mobile phone. That’s why researchers have looking for an alternative, which is a challenge.
Big batteries, like those in your car, have a liquid electrolyte. They require a rigid plastic or metal casing to keep the battery connections stable, and still, they have to have the liquid in there. But most batteries you use are lithium ions, where the cathode and anode are connected using an electrolyte made up of an organic gel called a polymer.
But they tend to explode.
There is something called dendrites— rigid tree-like structures with needle-like sharp tips, much like stalactites, called whiskers— that can build up in anode. These dendrites can slowly grow and puncture the separator between the anode and the cathode. And that’s when you get an exploding battery.
There is another part of an exploding battery. Lithium is highly reactive. If, for any reason, the battery casing is punctured, the reaction of the lithium with the moisture in the air can cause the gel electrolyte to catch fire.
Lithium-ion batteries also don’t work well in the cold. As the gel is organic, the more times they are used, the less charge the batteries can move -this means it becomes unusable soon.
The Future is Coming.
The problem is with the gel, right? So scientists are trying to ‘get the gel outta there.’ They are off to using an electrolyte that is a solid piece.
Research published in Nature Materials just did that. Building on another paper from 2011, researchers created a solid electrolyte that can move the electrons just like any gel or liquid can do. And yet these types of electrolytes are free from the tendency to explode or sensitivity to cold.
They did this using a 3D tetrahedral framework of lithium, germanium, phosphorus, and sulfur. The framework lets electrons move through it, hopping from one molecule to the next hundreds of thousands of charge cycles.
However, this story is from a few years ago. Nowadays, they are using a ceramic or glassy electrolyte, which is much easier to find, more durable, and have more positive features than the 3D tetrahedral framework.
‘It would not explode even if you nail through the battery, researchers say. Moreover, it functions at far less than subzero temperature— -20oF (-29oC).
Thus most of the issues are solved.
These solid-state batteries will be safer, cheaper, and will last longer.
Some sites like Nobsim Reviews claims new battery tech could fuel revolution.
The Future Has Come!
A couple of years ago, John B. Goodenough found the research of Portuguese Physicist Maria H. Braga. She and a colleague had invented a glass electrolyte. Since then, they have been working together in Austin to create a new battery, unlike any other better seen before. Along with the new glass electrolyte, the electrodes, the positive and negative ends of the battery, are entirely different. This new battery does not rely on ions in a lattice on one side. Instead, the metal from the negative side travels across the electrolyte and coats the positive side, creating a thin layer on the top.
Conventionally, the two electrodes need to be made of different materials. That’s where the voltage comes from. If we used zinc or copper or any other material on both sides, nothing would be produced. Likewise, once the positive side is coated with the metal from the negative side with this new battery, the voltage should drop to zero. So the fact that this battery even works is confusing. It seems to be generating something from nothing. Thermodynamics does not allow this concept. But according to Goodenough, it does not only just work, but it works spectacularly well.
The interesting features are:
- Compared to the current batteries, it can hold 3 to 10 times more charge. It can be charged in minutes instead of hours.
- It has also got a lifespan of over a thousand cycles. The fact that it does not explode in your pocket was proven about four years ago.
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- It is cheaper to make since it works with low-cost sodium as well as lithium.
- It is fully functional between a wide range of temperatures: -20oC to 60oC (give or take some degrees, if you consider different sources).
- The lower environmental impact is another considerable aspect.
This new battery is precisely the type of battery that would make an electric car a true replacement for a gasoline-powered one.
It is the sort of thing that could be hailed as a monumental achievement.
A Hoax?
There was a chance. There was always because until now, we don’t have any concrete material proof. We haven’t used any battery like that yet.
However, the other side of the discourse cannot be ruled out either.
Maybe this battery works for some other reason we have yet to figure out.
Maybe Goodenough’s explanation that the plating is too thin to drop the voltage is correct.
Above all, it’s tough to argue with Goodenough’s credibility. This scientist helped invent the modern lithium-ion battery. He is effectively the Li-ion King. His colleagues don’t believe that he and Braga could be that confident with the slightest possibility of having any hidden flaw in their theory and proof in their laboratory. They have even applied for a patent.
The Conclusion
There is no point in refusing the new era that is going to start with the glass battery. Cars can run hundreds of miles and can further be charged within minutes. Mobile phones will be alive for nearly a month with a single cycle of recharging. These are no more science fiction. These are a reality that the world is going to see soon.
Let’s welcome the new era, the new revolution.
