Korean university creates world's safest battery

Researchers from the Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST) are celebrating the creation of new tech that could consign EV battery fires and/or explosions to the past.

According to the Korean-based team, scientists working at the university have developed a pioneering new lithium-ion battery that employs a triple-layer solid polymer electrolyte which brings huge advancements in both fire safety and longevity.

Designed for everything from smart phones to EVs and even large-scale energy storage solutions, the new design is said to overcome the dangerous issues related to solid polymer electrolyte batteries.

It was originally thought switching from a liquid electrolyte to a solid-state electrolyte would alleviate so-called dendritic growth within the cells that sees lithium ‘grow’ in tree-like structures during repeated charging and discharging, however it was later found dendrites disrupt battery connections and could cause lethal internal shorts.

As well as a different structure, the key to improved safety comes from bonding the electrolyte with something called decabromodiphenyl ethane that prevents fires, plus a zeolite substance that improves the structural integrity of the battery.

A higher concentration of lithium salt, meanwhile, is said to allow more rapid movement of lithium ions, boosting efficiency while improving discharging rates and the time it takes for to top-up the batteries.

The structure also plays a role with the middle layer delivering mechanical strength while the softer outer surfaces facilitating easier movement of lithium ions for faster energy transfer.

Thanks to the radical redesign, degradation within the battery over its lifetime has also been reduced.

Researchers found that after 1000 charging cycles, equivalent to between 300,000-500,000km of road use, the batteries still retained some 87.9 per cent of their energy density – a marked improvement over the 70-80 per cent performance rating conventional batteries return over the same number of charge cycles.

If a fire does break out within the cell, thanks to the new bonded material, the battery is capable of self-extinguishing any thermal event, making the new power pack among the safest batteries every produced.

“This research is anticipated to make a significant contribution to the commercialisation of lithium metal batteries using [solid polymer] electrolytes, while providing enhanced stability and efficiency [to] energy storage devices,” principal researcher Kim Jae-hyun said.

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