Invention of liquid zinc battery can prevent explosions

Researchers think they have found a safer, more durable zinc battery that uses aqueous electrolytes (with added zinc salts) that can prevent the possibility of explosions like lithium-ion batteries.

Researchers at the University of Maryland's A. James Clark School of Engineering have created a new zinc battery that uses an aqueous electrolyte instead of the flammable electrolyte in lithium-ion batteries. However, to keep the battery durable and long-lasting, the team added zinc and metal salts.

To keep the battery durable and long-lasting, the team added zinc and metal salts.

One of the paper's authors and a contributor to the A. James Clark School of Medicine (UMD), Fei Wang, said:“We have a battery that can compete with lithium-ion batteries in energy density, but without the risk of explosion or fire.”

This breakthrough could have a huge impact on the consumer electronics industry. A typical example is the case of the Samsung Galaxy Note7, which had to be recalled in 2016 after the device's battery repeatedly caught fire. The battery problems were discovered after extensive testing at manufacturing plants and were fixed by Samsung in the Galaxy Note8 and Galaxy S8, which are currently on sale.

The team hopes the advance could be commercialized and replace the flammable lithium-ion batteries in most consumer electronics today.

This aqueous zinc battery is rechargeable and, unlike other zinc batteries, does not require the electrolyte to be refilled with water. The team believes they have found a way to reduce the manufacturing costs of this type of battery.

Improving lithium-ion batteries is a big area of ​​research right now. The Belgian company Imec is developing a lithium ion battery with a nanosolid electrolyte (it starts out as a liquid but then turns solid).

UMD and many other research groups have found that wet-cell batteries are safer and more efficient, but they often come at a cost. For electric vehicles, solid-state batteries often have low conductivity, which is bad news for charging. However, UMD hopes to produce batteries that can be charged in 20 minutes and help vehicles travel longer distances by 2024.

The new zinc battery research was published Monday in the journal Nature Materials.