IIT Gandhinagar, JAIST find way to make phone, laptop batteries charge faster, last longer

NEW DELHI: Indian Institute of Technology, Gandhinagar (IITGN) in collaboration with Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (JAIST) has invented a new anode material that leads to lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) to recharged in minutes.

this two-dimensional anode material was developed based on a new class of nanosheets (discovered by Indian scientists) that combine the rich chemistry of titanium and boron (Titanium Diboride- TiB2). The research teams aimed to develop a material for anode that not only enables fast charging of the battery but should also facilitate a long life.

The key features of the new invention include ultra-fast charging that leads to full charge within minutes and a long life cycle with 10,000 cycles at high charge currents. The nanosheets used to create the anode have high density pores which provide a high surface area for catching Li-ions as the pores enable a better diffusion.

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The research team led by Kabeer Jasuja (IITGN) and Noriyoshi Matsumi (JAIST) found that the use of TiB 2-based hierarchical nanosheets (THNS) to prepare the anode could resolve the lithium-Ion diffusion-related challenge. The research also found that this anode material yielded an ultra-fast charging capacity with a considerable discharge capacity at high-capacity retention which means that batteries could give the same high performance even after 10,000 charging cycles.

In addition, there was also no degradation or corrosion of THNS found due to redox reactions, the porosity of the material retained and showed structural stability over thousands of charge-discharge cycles. The team also had another important consideration that the material should be such that it can be synthesised in a simple scalable way so that it can transform existing technology.

Currently, graphite and lithium titanate are among the most widely used anode materials in the commercially available lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) that power laptops, mobile phones, and electric vehicles. These batteries have a lower energy density, which means that they would need more frequent recharging.

The researchers emphasised that this is technology can be used for commercial applications where high energy density, high power, long life, and ultra-fast charging are required. The research team plans to translate this work from the lab to a real-life application.

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Throwing more light on the need for this innovation, JAIST, professor of Materials Chemistry, Noriyoshi Matsumi, said: “Nowadays, the requirement for high-rate charge-discharge technology is tremendously increasing in order to enable widespread commercialisation of various kinds of electric vehicles in future. Our findings can stimulate related research fields to invite more researchers to work on application of the unique 2D materials. We hope continuous research will contribute to the convenience of EV users, lesser air pollution on the road, especially in cities, and less stressful mobile life, which will enhance the productivity of society.”