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RKP5637

(67,108 posts)
Sun Apr 28, 2013, 08:42 AM Apr 2013

Scientists develop lithium-ion battery that charges 120 times faster than normal

Interesting ... this would really revolutionize the auto industry.

http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/134635-scientists-develop-lithium-ion-battery-that-charges-120-times-faster-than-normal

A group of Korean scientists, working at the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST), have developed a fast-charge lithium-ion battery that can be recharged 30 to 120 times faster than conventional li-ion batteries. The team believes it can build a battery pack for electric vehicles that can be fully charged in less than a minute.

One of the main issues with rechargeable batteries is that they take longer to recharge as their physical volume grows. When you recharge a battery, it charges from the outside in — so the fatter the battery, the longer it takes. You can somewhat avoid this by breaking larger batteries into smaller individual cells, but that technique only gets you so far.

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madokie

(51,076 posts)
1. This would be a game changer for sure
Sun Apr 28, 2013, 09:07 AM
Apr 2013

I can only imagine where battery technology will be in a couple years.

RKP5637

(67,108 posts)
6. This will/could spark a tremendous revolution in power
Sun Apr 28, 2013, 10:16 AM
Apr 2013

systems, probably akin to the combustion engine. Also, probably, more off-grid power systems! I think ...

RKP5637

(67,108 posts)
14. Koch Brothers in Kansas, 7th and 8th wealthiest individuals on earth are going to be
Sun Apr 28, 2013, 04:34 PM
Apr 2013

really pissed!

 

RC

(25,592 posts)
7. This is the part that all too often gets overlooked in fast recharged batteries.
Sun Apr 28, 2013, 12:34 PM
Apr 2013
Finally, just thinking out loud: The battery in a Tesla Roadster stores 56 kWh of electric energy. To recharge that in under a minute would require an awful lot of power and some very thick cables, right?


To give you an Idea -
I= E/R The greater the current flow, the greater the heat from the resistance. This resistance includes the wire used in charging and the internal resistance of the battery.
That is why they use very high voltages in electrical transmission lines. To keep the current down.

I=Current (Amps)
E= Voltage
R= Resistance

Watts= Current X Voltage.
With a 48 volt battery: 56KW = 1170(I) X 48(V)
The Main breaker in your house breaker box is only 150 to 200 Amps
150 Amps X 120 Volts = 18000 Watts at the tripping point of the breakers. Times two for 240 Volt Service, of a total 36,000 Watts at the tripping point of the main breakers.

RKP5637

(67,108 posts)
8. Yep, it would be ... it'll be interesting to see how this all pans out. Thanks for the calcs!
Reply to RC (Reply #7)
Sun Apr 28, 2013, 01:38 PM
Apr 2013

Festivito

(13,452 posts)
11. slow charge at home. Fast charge at a station.
Reply to RC (Reply #7)
Sun Apr 28, 2013, 02:11 PM
Apr 2013

Stations could buy fast charging units. Ready charged capacitors.

At home, you'd have overnight.

 

oldhippie

(3,249 posts)
13. Or, looking at it a slightly different way ....
Reply to RC (Reply #7)
Sun Apr 28, 2013, 02:16 PM
Apr 2013

Your normal modern house with 240V and 200 Amp service is capable of supplying
240v X 200i = 48,000 watts, or 48kW of power max.

The Tesla battery is capable of storing 56 kWhr of energy. Now, it wouldn't normally be discharged completely, typically down to maybe to 20% of capacity before the safety circuits cut in to protect the battery. So we only need to recharge
56kWh X 0.80 = 44.8 kWh, which is a little less than the entire capacity of our house's power capacity over an hour.

But, recharging efficiency is not 100%. In fact, it's typically 80% for current batteries, so we are back to the 48kW capacity of our house to recharge the battery in an hour. That means turn off your lights, refridge, water heater, well pump, and any other electricity using device in your house in order to fill up your Tesla's battery in one hour. OK, I guess some folks can deal with that.

But to charge up that same battery in one MINUTE would take 60 times the power! (That's assuming the battery will accept that rate without damage.) That means you need the total power capacity of 60 modern homes (with 200 amp service) to charge your car battery in a minute. That's, like, your whole neighborhood. Everyone in your area gets no electricity for a minute as you juice up your bar battery! Which really isn't going to happen, as your wiring in your house is way too small anyway.

So really, any "one minute" charging would have to be done in special, high power facilities with lots of energy capacity and some serious heavy duty industrial safety considerations. Yes, there could be a facility like a "gas station" where you could pull in and charge up, but I doubt they are going to let Joe Sixpack out of his vehicle to plug in the cable that will be delivering the roughly 2.8 MegaWATTS for that one minute.

Just some of the fun things you think about when you have the curse of the engineer. ( I hope no one finds a math error!)

sofa king

(10,857 posts)
9. I'll add it to the list of life-changing battery breakthroughs:
Sun Apr 28, 2013, 01:52 PM
Apr 2013
http://www.democraticunderground.com/122817594#post5
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=3779253&mesg_id=3779334


2012:

http://www.geekwire.com/2012/battery-breakthrough-technology-promises-triple-lithium-ion-capacity/
http://physicsworld.com/cws/article/news/2012/mar/08/graphene-in-new-battery-breakthrough

2011:

http://grist.org/list/2011-06-08-no-joke-this-is-the-biggest-battery-breakthrough-ever/
http://www.csmonitor.com/Innovation/Horizons/2011/1121/Battery-breakthrough-could-keep-smart-phones-charged-for-an-entire-week

2010:

http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/04/lightweight-lithium-air-batteries/
http://www.treehugger.com/cars/5-battery-breakthroughs-that-could-one-day-power-electric-cars.html

2009:

http://www.gizmag.com/lithium-ion-battery-breakthrough-mit/11244/
http://arstechnica.com/science/2009/03/lithium-breakthrough-could-charge-batteries-in-10-seconds/
http://www.udri.udayton.edu/News/2009/Pages/BatteryBreakthrough!.aspx

2008:

http://news.stanford.edu/news/2008/january9/nanowire-010908.html
http://cosmiclog.nbcnews.com/_news/2008/01/18/4350458-a-revolution-in-batteries?lite

2007:

http://www.nature.com/nnano/journal/v2/n10/full/nnano.2007.318.html
http://www.nbcnews.com/id/22240865/ns/us_news-environment/t/breakthrough-battery-could-boost-electric-cars/#.UXA9F8rqfFg

2006:

http://web-japan.org/trends/science/sci060119.html
http://blogs.cars.com/kickingtires/2006/09/ceramic_battery.html

I look forward to that elusive day in the future when I can play Lawrence of Arabia on my laptop, off the charger.
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