More data could turbocharge efforts to build better batteries, researchers say

IDAHO FALLS – As nations work to eliminate carbon emissions, batteries will play a huge role. Electric vehicles powered by batteries seem likely to dominate the future of commercial and consumer transportation. Likewise, large stationary batteries will augment renewables like wind and solar by storing energy when production exceeds demand on the electrical grid, then sending that energy back to the grid when needed. But even today’s most advanced lithium-ion batteries don’t yet have the combination of economics, durability and energy density necessary to meet all future energy goals. “By 2035, most major industrialized countries have said they want to be mostly carbon-free or have non-emitting vehicles,” said Eric Dufek, department manager for Idaho National Laboratory’s Energy Storage & Advanced Transportation Department. “We need a lot of really good batteries,…

Read more…