The Chinese Academy of Sciences has announced a technological breakthrough that could overturn the perception of electric mobility and hasten the end of the era of gasoline engines. A group of scientists from the academy's Institute of Physics have developed an innovation that significantly improves the efficiency of solid-state batteries, allowing electric vehicles to travel up to 1,000 km on a single charge.
To date, most electric vehicles offer a range of around 500 km, which still lags behind the 600-800 km achieved by models with a full tank of gasoline. This new Chinese approach aims to eliminate the so-called “fear of range“ (range anxiety) forever.
The breakthrough lies in several key innovations that solve the main problem of solid-state batteries – fragility and poor contact between components:
Special “glue“: Scientists have created a substance that automatically moves to the interface between the electrode and the solid electrolyte. It acts as a “filler”, actively attracting lithium ions to all gaps and pores, thus creating a perfectly strong bond. This overcomes the problem where the hard and brittle sulfide electrolyte separates from the softer lithium metal electrode, which reduces charging and discharging efficiency.
Durable polymer packaging: A polymer “packaging“ for the electrolyte has been developed, which makes the battery extremely flexible and durable, similar to plastic film. It can withstand over 20,000 bending or twisting cycles without failure, making it resistant to everyday deformation and mechanical stress.
This flexible “packaging“ also incorporates small “chemical modules“. Some of them are designed to accelerate the movement of lithium ions, while others capture additional ions. As a result of this complex technology, the battery's energy storage capacity has increased by an impressive 86%.
In practice, this new battery would allow drivers to travel long distances, for example from Paris to Milan, without the need for recharging. The authors of the study, the details of which were reported by the Chinese Academy of Sciences media, are convinced that this breakthrough will finally pave the way for the mass adoption of electric vehicles and the eventual replacement of the gasoline engine.