Gasoline Cars Could Be Finished Off by Korean Researchers' Findings
Gasoline-powered car supremacy is being rattled in recent years. The surge of electric vehicles (EVs) that are increasingly widespread and affordable has gained new ‘ammunition’ that could threaten conventional vehicles.
Researchers at Pohang University of Science and Technology (Postech) in South Korea have developed a silicon-based battery for EVs that is more efficient and powerful.
The finding is predicted to be a turning point in the history of the global automotive industry, while accelerating the mass migration of society to electric vehicles.
Not without reason, the silicon battery crafted by scientists from the Ginseng Nation offers impressive performance. In a single charging, an electric car is claimed to be able to travel up to 1,000 kilometres. This distance far exceeds the capability of current EVs on the market, and can even rival the range of a full petrol tank.
Overcoming technological barriers:
Silicon material has long attracted tech giants as a battery component due to its massive storage capacity. However, the biggest challenge is its instability. Silicon can swell up to three times in volume when charged, and shrink during use. This expansion-contraction phenomenon risks damaging battery components.
To tackle this, earlier research typically used nano-sized silicon particles. Unfortunately, this approach triggers new problems, namely sky-high production costs and extremely complex manufacturing processes.
Seeing the gap, the Postech team took a bold step. Instead of nano particles, they used silicon at 1,000 times larger, i.e., on a micro scale.
The advantage: the production process becomes much easier, production costs are cheaper, and the energy density produced is much more generous. So what about the micro-silicon expansion problem?
The researchers circumvented it by using a flexible polymer gel electrolyte that can chemically adjust itself as silicon changes shape. The gel is bound securely using radiation via electron beams. The result is a battery structure that remains robust and safe even as silicon particles expand and contract.
This clever formulation yields a silicon battery with energy density reaching about 40% higher than that of standard lithium-ion batteries currently powering the global EV industry.
Even more, the technology is ready to use and does not require a total overhaul of existing battery factories.
‘We use micro-silicon anodes, and the results still produce stable batteries. This research brings us one step closer to high-energy-density lithium-ion battery systems that are real,’ said Park Soojin, a member of the Postech research team, quoted on the university’s official site.
With longer driving ranges, more efficient charging times, and lower production costs, this Korean innovation is set to become a serious threat to gasoline cars.