Currently, most cathode materials used in batteries for electric vehicles are layered oxides composed of nickel for over 60% of the transition metals. Using nickel-rich layered oxide is advantageous in establishing the mileage of an electric vehicle due to its high energy density, but its usage is limited by instability in the supply and demand […]
Trafigura faces $577 million loss on alleged nickel fraud
Commodities trader Trafigura Group will take an almost half a billion dollars charge in first half of 2023, after discovering that some nickel cargoes it bought didn’t contain the metal they were supposed to. The Geneva-based company said the “systematic fraud” was committed by a group of companies connected to and controlled by Indian businessman […]
Microstructure and defect engineering improves performance of lithium-ion batteries
A new North Carolina State University study, performed in collaboration with battery testing researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory, shows that extremely short pulses from a high-powered laser can cause tiny defects in lithium-ion battery materials—defects that can enhance battery performance. The technique, called nanosecond pulsed laser annealing, lasts for […]
New battery seems to offer it all: Lithium-metal/lithium-air electrodes
Current lithium batteries are based on intercalation—lithium ions squeeze into spaces within electrode materials such as graphite. As a result, most of the battery’s volume and bulk is dedicated to things that don’t contribute to carrying charges between the electrodes, which sets a limit on the sorts of energy densities that these technologies can reach. […]
Could space dust help protect the Earth from climate change?
On a cold winter day, the warmth of the sun is welcome. Yet as humanity emits more greenhouse gases, the Earth’s atmosphere traps more and more of the sun’s energy, which steadily increases the Earth’s temperature. One strategy for reversing this trend is to intercept a fraction of sunlight before it reaches our planet. For […]
General Motors competes for stake in Vale’s base metals unit
General Motors Co. is competing for a stake in Brazilian mining giant Vale SA’s base metals unit, people familiar with the matter said, underscoring automakers’ desire for easy access to the materials needed for electric vehicle batteries. Detroit-based General Motors has advanced to the next round of bidding for a minority stake in the business, […]
Net-zero-emissions flying is possible by 2050 with new technologies and habits, scientists say
With its high-carbon footprint, air travel challenges the goal set by many countries of stabilizing global mean temperature by the middle of the 21st century. The aviation sector could achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 through a combination of technology and a change in habits, but it’s not going to be easy, according to Earth […]
Electric car batteries get a second life storing solar power
A California energy startup has turned more than a thousand electric vehicle (EV) batteries into solar power storage capsules, in an intriguing effort to prove out an alternative to traditional recycling. Why it matters: Electric cars are cleaner than their gas-guzzling counterparts, but their batteries extract a significant ecological toll in the form of mining and […]
New sodium, aluminum battery aims to integrate renewables for grid resiliency
A new battery design could help ease integration of renewable energy into the nation’s electrical grid at lower cost, using Earth-abundant metals, according to a study just published in Energy Storage Materials. A research team, led by the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, demonstrated that the new design for a grid energy storage […]
Congo’s president wants new exploration for green energy metals
Democratic Republic of Congo wants to position itself as a key source of metals in the green energy transition, and that will mean new exploration for nickel and chrome, according to President Felix Tshisekedi. Exploration for the two minerals will begin “in the next few days” in Congo’s southern, diamond-rich Kasai region, Tshisekedi said Tuesday […]
