CATL (Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd) is negotiating with General Motors (GM) to license its LFP (lithium iron phosphate) battery technology. CATL and GM are also discussing the possibility of building a joint factory in North America. Based on local reports in China, negotiations between CATL and General Motors are just starting. However, the pair […]
Metals Tech
Implantable Batteries Run on the Body’s Oxygen
Nearly all implantable medical devices, such as pacemakers and neurostimulators, are limited by the capacity of their onboard batteries. To avoid the need for invasive surgery to replace these devices once their batteries run out, scientists have sought to develop implants that can derive power from the body. To that end, scientists in China now […]
Electrochemistry helps clean up electronic waste recycling, precious metal mining
A new method safely extracts valuable metals locked up in discarded electronics and low-grade ore using dramatically less energy and fewer chemical materials than current methods, report University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign researchers in the journal Nature Chemical Engineering. The paper is titled “Redox-mediated electrochemical liquid-liquid Extraction (e-LLE) for selective metal recovery.” Gold and platinum group […]
New all-liquid iron flow battery for grid energy storage
A commonplace chemical used in water treatment facilities has been repurposed for large-scale energy storage in a new battery design by researchers at the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. The design provides a pathway to a safe, economical, water-based, flow battery made with Earth-abundant materials. It provides another pathway in the quest to […]
Scientists discover origin of corrosion in 3D-printed stainless steel
Researchers at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory delved into the mysterious world of pitting corrosion in additively manufactured (3D-printed) stainless steel 316L in seawater and discovered that the key players in this corrosion drama are tiny particles called “slags.” Stainless steel 316L is a popular choice for marine applications due to its combination of mechanical […]
Future nuclear power reactors could rely on molten salts—but what about corrosion?
Most discussions of how to avert climate change focus on solar and wind generation as key to the transition to a future carbon-free power system. But Michael Short, the Class of ’42 Associate Professor of Nuclear Science and Engineering at MIT and associate director of the MIT Plasma Science and Fusion Center (PSFC), is impatient […]
New model makes it easier to build sustainable structures of textile-reinforced concrete
By reinforcing concrete with textiles instead of steel, it is possible to use less material and create slender, lightweight structures with a significantly lower environmental impact. The technology to utilize carbon fiber textiles already exists, but it has been challenging, among other things, to produce a basis for reliable calculations for complex and vaulted structures. […]
We rely heavily on lithium batteries – but there’s a growing array of alternatives
Lithium batteries are very difficult to recycle and require huge amounts of water and energy to produce. Emerging alternatives could be cheaper and greener. In Australia’s Yarra Valley, new battery technology is helping power the country’s residential buildings and commercial ventures – without using lithium. These batteries rely on sodium – an element found in […]
Sodium-ion batteries put to the test in Komatsu pilot program
This electric forklift concept by Japanese equipment giant Komatsu is powered by sodium-ion batteries and promises safer, cheaper operation than the competition. Sodium-ion batteries have been hailed as a possible alternative to more expensive lithium-ion batteries for a while, and have shown enough promise that EV leaders like BYD and Volkswagen-backed JAC have already spent […]
Novel material for perovskite solar cells can improve their stability and efficiency
A team of chemists from Kaunas University of Technology (KTU), Lithuania, developed a new material for perovskite solar cells. After polymerization, it can be used as a hole transporting layer in both regular and inverted architecture solar cells; in both cases, the solar elements constructed have better power conversion efficiencies and operational stability. Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) […]