In a few years, we might all be carrying less graphite with us.
Not because we’ll be switching to harder pencils with less graphite and more clay, but because of our mobile phone batteries. There’s a new carbon in town (called OSPC-1) that might replace graphite in lithium-ion batteries.
It can…
- …”store more than twice as many lithium ions, and therefore power”
- …”store lithium ions at more than double the rate as graphite – meaning charging speeds can be twice as fast”
- “Discharge speeds can also be vastly improved […] which means it can also be used to power more energy-hungry applications”
- It also seems to avoid the problem current lithium-ion batteries have (dendrites) that can cause them “to explode into flames”.
- It also seems to be “much more longer-lasting than graphite” meaning batteries might not deteriorate so fast.
Read more about it in this article from Lancaster University.
One thing to mention though: Graphite is quite cheap (unless you buy it in the shape of a CalCedar Blackwing or a Graf von Faber-Castell pencil). The new material isn’t (yet?). Who knows how long it will take to end up in consumer products.
Similar stuff on Bleistift.blog:
I won’t lose any sleep over this just yet 🙂
I recall a while ago that lithium-ion batteries were going to be replaced by some compound derived from rhubarb… no it wasn’t on April Fools Day 🙂
Oh, I hadn’t heard the rhubarb one yet.
This company has more than $US100M in funding and is working on silicon alternatives: https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexknapp/2018/05/29/black-magic-powder-sila-nanotechnologies-gives-lithium-ion-batteries-a-double-digit-power-boost/
Stephen, thank you for the link. Unfortunately I don’t seem to be able to open it. first I get a GDPR message and then there’s a blank ‘Cookie Consent’ page. I should try again in a few days. Maybe they have temporary problems.