Silicon Batteries Become Triggers for Shifting from Conventional Cars to Electric Vehicles in the Future • OBROLANBISNIS.com — The advancement of electric vehicle technology is increasingly rapid. One of them is marked by the presence of silicon batteries developed by South Korean scientists.
This innovation has the potential to bring major changes in the automotive world, especially in reducing dependence on fuel oil (BBM) and accelerating the adoption of electric vehicles.
A research team from Pohang University of Science and Technology has succeeded in creating a silicon battery that can take a vehicle up to 1,000 kilometers with just one charge.
This finding provides a solution to the problem of limited range which has been the main obstacle for consumers to switch from gasoline cars to electric vehicles.
With a longer cruising range, it is not impossible that silicon batteries will trigger a major shift from conventional cars to electric vehicles in the future.
Silicon material is widely studied for use in making batteries because it is abundantly available in various parts of the world. However, silicon also has characteristics that make it problematic.
The size of the silicon element can increase up to three times when charged, then shrink back down. Therefore, most studies try to make batteries with silicon material in the form of nano particles that are very small in size.
The problem is, the cost of producing nano particles is very expensive and the process is very complex.
Researchers from Pohang have a different approach. They actually use silicon particles reduced by 1,000 times larger, namely on a micro scale. Elements of this size are easier and cheaper to produce with a more generous energy density.
The researchers then looked for a solution to the problem of expanding and contracting silicon particles. They used a polymer electrolyte gel whose shape changes when the silicon element changes shape.
This gel is then chemically bound with radiation through electron bombardment. The result is a stable bond even though the silicon particles expand and contract.
In fact, the stability of the silicon battery made by the researchers is equivalent to a standard lithium-ion battery, with an energy density 40 percent greater.
“We use a micro-silicon anode, the result is still a stable battery. This research brings us closer to a high-energy-density lithium-ion battery system,” said Park Soojin from Pohang University.
The researchers stated that their designed battery can be easily applied. ***
