Battery - Single-crystal electrode

  

Battery - Single-Crystal Electrode 

S.B.G & CIG Interpretation 

LITHIUM

Average Lithium-ion battery chemistries which run for just 2,400 cycles (960,000) kilometers before their capacity starts to decline do not compare to advancing options yet with the M.D.E - C/M which use a 100 kWh Standard Fast Charge at 30-60 or 90 minute intervals on a 20-80% for battery degradation 

If we start upscalong equivlant size material to 20,000 cycles before it hit the 80% capacity 

That is 16,000 in an increase yet averages may be between 2,000 - 12,000 

Our 15 Year 500,000 Km repurpose plan then is stretched to 1/4 more or double if not more 

This is the road to break even & positive renewable material for batteries & this perpetual motion in a safe renewable effort for Energy in Motion or Stationary form 

20,000 CYCLES AT 80% 

8 Million Km

Researchers from Dalhousie University used the Canadian Light Source (CLS) at the University of Saskatchewan to analyze a new type of lithium-ion battery material – called a single-crystal electrode – that’s been charging and discharging non-stop in a Halifax lab for more than six years. It lasted more than 20,000 cycles before it hit the 80% capacity cutoff. That translates to driving a jaw-dropping 8 million kms.

“The main focus of our research was to understand how damage and fatigue inside a battery progresses over time, and how we can prevent it,” says Toby Bond, a senior scientist at the CLS, who conducted the research for his PhD, under the supervision of Professor Jeff Dahn, Professor Emeritus and Principal Investigator (NSERC/Tesla Canada/Dalhousie Alliance Grant) at Dalhousie University. The study was funded by Tesla Canada and NSERC under the Alliance grant program.

https://www.lightsource.ca/public/news/2024-25-q2-oct-dec/new-type-of-battery-could-outlast-evs-and-still-be-used-for-grid-energy-storage.php

The University of Saskatchewan's main campus is situated on Treaty 6 Territory and the Homeland of the Métis.

© University of Saskatchewan

EXTERNAL REVIEW 

5 million miles: Breakthrough EV battery breaks record range, lasts over 20,000 cycles
Using a synchrotron, the researchers were able to study the Li-ion batteries without taking them apart.

Updated: Dec 10, 2024 08:16 AM EST

Anew type of lithium-ion battery with a single crystal electrode can withstand over 20,000 charge-discharge cycles before hitting the 80 percent capacity cutoff.

Researchers at Dalhousie University studied the battery using an ultrabright synchrotron after it underwent continuous testing for six years. If it were fitted onto an electric vehicle (EV), this would roughly translate to a distance traveled of nearly five million miles (eight million km). 

While pushing the adoption of EVs, the US has also mandated by law that batteries retain 80 percent capacity even after eight years of operation. However, industry experts believe that technology needs to advance sufficiently so that batteries can outlast the vehicle itself.

When such batteries are built, they can be bundled together and repurposed to store energy from wind and solar power plants after the EV reaches the end of its life cycle. For technology to reach this state, researchers need to understand the mechanism of battery degradation, and this is where the Canadian Light Source (CLS) at the University of Saskatchewan helped. 

Battery under a new light

Funded by Tesla Canada and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), researchers at Dalhousie University studied two types of lithium-ion batteries, one with a regular electrode and the other with a single crystal electrode under the ultrabright synchrotron light at CLS. 

“The great thing about doing this kind of measurement at a synchrotron is we can actually look at this at a microscopic level without having to take the cell apart,” said Toby Bond, senior scientist at CLS, in a press release.  

Inside a regular battery, lithium forces atoms of the electrode material to expand and contract, leading to microscopic cracking.  “Eventually, there were so many cracks that the electrode was essentially pulverized,” added Bond. 

However, the battery with a single crystal electrode showed no such signs. Instead, the researchers could not distinguish between a new cell and a six-year-old one. 

Snowball vs. ice cube

The researchers have pinned down the striking difference between the two battery electrodes to the shape and behavior of their materials. The electrode of a regular battery comprises particles that are about 50 times thinner than human hair. But these particles, too, are composed of much smaller crystals and are held together like snowflakes in a snowball. 

On the other hand, the single crystal electrode is like a big ice cube, which is much more resistant to stress and strain. The researchers are confident that we are reaching the critical point where batteries will outlast other components of the car and not be its limiting factor anymore. 

“We really need these vehicles to last as long as possible, because the longer you drive them, the better its improvement on the carbon footprint is,” added Bond in the press release. 

Such batteries are also being manufactured commercially and should reach market in the following years. 
The research findings were published in the

Images show the degradation of a typical electrode of a lithium-ion battery over time. Image credit: Journal of The Electrochemical Society (2024). DOI: 10.1149/1945-7111/ad88a8

https://youtu.be/S_cqJ5Z0JVY?si=hYvGOze1n1iDvbJC

S.B.G & CIG