By Allen Tsai | Thu Mar 12, 2009 12:41 am |
Scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have developed a way to charge lithium batteries in a couple of minutes rather than hours, opening the door to a generation of fast-charging mobile phones.
Current batteries made of lithium iron phosphate (LiFePO4) can store large amounts of energy but stumble at releasing it.They are better at dispensing the power in a steady flow than at discharging it or gaining it in a sudden burst. Until now, the blame was on the charged lithium atoms. These ions, along with electrons, move too slowly through the battery material before arriving at the terminal to deliver their charge -- or so it was thought. But a pair of materials researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) say the problem lies not with the ions but rather at how the ions gain access to nano-scale tunnels that riddle the material and transport the electrons to their destination. Their solution was a lithium phosphate coating that, like a system of feeder roads, nudges the ions towards the tunnels. The ions then zip instantly down the tunnel entrance and to the terminal. A prototype mobile phone battery built using this surface material can be recharged in just 20 seconds or less thanks to the improved ion flow, compared to six minutes for a battery cell that does not use the material. The surface material is not new but is manufactured in a different way. This means batteries that use the faster-charging surface material could be on the market within two to three years.
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