PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Futuristic copper foam batteries get more bang for the buck

2013-10-24
(Press-News.org) Contact information: Catherine Meyers
cmeyers@aip.org
301-209-3088
American Institute of Physics
Futuristic copper foam batteries get more bang for the buck People use their GPS apps, cameras, and mobile internet to navigate strange cities in search of good coffee, record "selfie" commentary while they wait in line, and upload their videos directly to social media sites while they sip their latte. But no amount of high-tech savvy can save a well-loved device from dying when its battery is drained.

Smartphones suffer from the same basic ailment that plagues solar power plants and wind farms – they lack cheap, reliable, long-life batteries to store large amounts of energy for when the sun goes down, the wind stops blowing, or the device is unplugged for a long time.

"I think almost any application in technology you can think of is currently limited by the battery," said Amy Prieto, a chemist at Colorado State University who leads a start-up company with the goal of developing a better energy storage device. The group is nearing the prototype phase for a lithium ion battery that should be safer, cheaper, faster-charging, and more environmentally friendly than conventional batteries now on the market. She will present her latest results at the upcoming AVS 60th International Symposium and Exhibition, held Oct. 27 – Nov. 1 in Long Beach, Calif.

Batteries today have a number of unsolved problems, including high cost, heat output, limited lifespans, and the toxic or corrosive materials used in their manufacture. But two main issues limit the functionality of modern batteries, Prieto said: low energy density and low power density.

Low energy density means that a conventional smartphone battery can't hold enough energy in a small enough volume to power the phone for much longer than one or two days, while low power density means the battery will take hours to recharge, instead of minutes.

Prieto's group has tackled many of these challenges by making of list of desired properties for each of the main battery components. The team then developed one component at a time – starting with a copper foam structure the team purchased to serve as the current collector on the anode side of the battery.

"Foam is relatively easy to manufacture," says Prieto. It also has a 3D structure that increases the surface area of the electrodes and brings them closer together, which in turn increases the power density of the battery. In terms of energy density, the foam should also get more bang for the buck. The intricate 3D structures utilize the electrode material more efficiently than a flat surface.

On top of the copper foam, the researchers electroplate the anode, made from a material called copper antimonide. In a kind of bootstrap battery building, the anode then serves as an electrode for an electrochemical polymerization reaction that deposits the battery's solid electrolyte. Finally, the team fills the space within the foam with a slurry that is dried to form the cathode. An aluminum mesh structure collects the current on the cathode side.

The electroplating equipment the team uses is inexpensive compared to the equipment needed to make other types of batteries. Prieto estimates the cost to manufacture the copper foam batteries will be about half that of conventional lithium ion batteries made in China. The team also calculates that the foam battery should store the same amount of energy as conventional batteries in two-thirds the volume, charge five to ten times faster, and last up to ten times longer.

The research team's new battery also promises a number of safety and environmental benefits. The solid electrolyte the team chose reduces the risk of fire posed by conventional liquid electrolytes. In addition, the team relied only on water-based, non-toxic chemistry to manufacture the battery. "This was my personal dream," says Prieto. "I didn't think it would actually work, but it now looks like it will."

Throughout the design process the team had to develop new ways to make known materials, such as the copper antimonide anode, and make entirely new materials, such as the polymer electrolyte. The team has tested each individual component and has successfully built a full 2D battery on a copper plate. The researchers are now in the process of integrating all the components in 3D.

Electric bikes and portable electronics are the first test applications the team plans for their foam battery. "We are less than one year from our first prototype, after which we'll have third party testing," says Prieto. "We're aiming for low volume, early market beta testing shortly after that."

###

Presentation MS+AS+EM+EN+NS+TF-MoM8, "Manufacturing a Three-dimensional, Solid-state Rechargeable Battery," is at 10:40 a.m. Pacific Time on Monday, Oct. 28, 2013.

MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE AVS 60th INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM & EXHIBITION

The Long Beach Convention Center is located at 300 E. Ocean Blvd., Long Beach, CA 90802.

USEFUL LINKS
Main meeting website: http://www2.avs.org/symposium/AVS60/pages/info.html
Technical Program: http://www.avssymposium.org/

PRESSROOM
The AVS Pressroom will be located in the Long Beach Convention Center. Pressroom hours are Monday-Thursday, 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Your press badge will allow you to utilize the pressroom to write, interview, collect new product releases, review material, or just relax. The press badge will also admit you, free of charge, into the exhibit area, lectures, and technical sessions, as well as the Welcome Mixer on Monday Evening and the Awards Ceremony and Reception on Wednesday night.

This news release was prepared for AVS by the American Institute of Physics (AIP).

ABOUT AVS
Founded in 1953, AVS is a not-for-profit professional society that promotes communication between academia, government laboratories, and industry for the purpose of sharing research and development findings over a broad range of technologically relevant topics. Its symposia and journals provide an important forum for the dissemination of information in many areas of science and technology, enabling a critical gateway for the rapid insertion of scientific breakthroughs into manufacturing realities.

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

NASA's TRMM satellite shows wind shear's effect on Tropical Storm Lorenzo

2013-10-24
NASA's TRMM satellite shows wind shear's effect on Tropical Storm Lorenzo NASA's TRMM satellite data provided forecasters at the National Hurricane Center with a good look at how wind shear is affecting Tropical Storm Lorenzo in the Atlantic Ocean. Forecasters at ...

Deciding when 'not' to maximize profits

2013-10-24
Deciding when 'not' to maximize profits How and why some corporations sabotage their own subsidiaries CHESTNUT HILL, MA (October 23, 2013) - Corporate America may have a reputation for maximizing profits whenever possible, but a new study shows that's not always the ...

TopoChip reveals the Braille code of cells

2013-10-24
TopoChip reveals the Braille code of cells Cells in the human body change shape as they crawl, split, or cling to other surfaces, but while the scientific literature is filled with examples of how cell shapes shift in response to things they touch, little ...

Uncovering the tricks of nature's ice-seeding bacteria

2013-10-24
Uncovering the tricks of nature's ice-seeding bacteria Like the Marvel Comics superhero Iceman, some bacteria have harnessed frozen water as a weapon. Species such as Pseudomonas syringae have special proteins embedded in their outer membranes that help ice ...

First-ever Information Systems Job Index shows healthy market for college students

2013-10-24
First-ever Information Systems Job Index shows healthy market for college students Despite a 7.2 percent national unemployment rate, the job market is a healthy one for college students majoring in information systems, with nearly three quarters of students receiving ...

Berkeley Lab researchers get a detailed look at a DNA repair protein in action

2013-10-24
Berkeley Lab researchers get a detailed look at a DNA repair protein in action Provides new insight into genome integrity and biological detection of mismatched DNA Errors in the human genetic code that arise from mismatched nucleotide base pairs in ...

Induced pluripotent stem cells reveal differences between humans and great apes

2013-10-24
Induced pluripotent stem cells reveal differences between humans and great apes Key differences in the regulation of jumping genes may have arisen relatively recently in evolution LA JOLLA, CA---- Researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have, for the first time, ...

Birthing a new breed of materials

2013-10-24
Birthing a new breed of materials Where two different materials meet on the atomic level, a new material can be born that is neither one nor the other. The two parent materials do not mix – they remain distinct from one another – but their marriage begets ...

Vacuums provide solid ground for new definition of kilogram

2013-10-24
Vacuums provide solid ground for new definition of kilogram Of all the standard units currently in use around the world, the kilogram – the official unit of mass in the International System of Units (SI) – is the only one that still relies on a physical object ...

Ignorance is sometimes bliss

2013-10-24
Ignorance is sometimes bliss A range of examples suggests a lack of information about their fellows can favor cooperation and prevent conflict among animals -- and even among genes For the Oct. 16 issue of Biology Letters, a special issue commemorating the 50th ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Sugar, the hidden thermostat in plants

Personality can explain why some CEOs earn higher salaries

This puzzle game shows kids how they’re smarter than AI

Study suggests remembrances of dead played role in rise of architecture in Andean region

Brain stimulation can boost math learning in people with weaker neural connections

Inhibiting enzyme could halt cell death in Parkinson’s disease, study finds

Neurotechnology reverses biological disadvantage in maths learning

UNDER EMBARGO: Neurotechnology reverses biological disadvantage in maths learning

Scientists target ‘molecular machine’ in the war against antimicrobial resistance

Extending classical CNOP method for deep-learning atmospheric and oceanic forecasting

Aston University research: Parents should encourage structure and independence around food to support children’s healthy eating

Thunderstorms are a major driver of tree death in tropical forests

Danforth Plant Science Center adds two new faculty members

Robotic eyes mimic human vision for superfast response to extreme lighting

Racial inequities and access to COVID-19 treatment

Residential segregation and lung cancer risk in African American adults

Scientists wipe out aggressive brain cancer tumors by targeting cellular ‘motors’

Capturability distinction analysis of continuous and pulsed guidance laws

CHEST expands Bridging Specialties Initiative to include NTM disease and bronchiectasis on World Bronchiectasis Day

Exposure to air pollution may cause heart damage

SwRI, UTSA selected by NASA to test electrolyzer technology aboard parabolic flight

Prebiotics might be a factor in preventing or treating issues caused by low brain GABA

Youngest in class at higher risk of mental health problems

American Heart Association announces new volunteer leaders for 2025-26

Gut microbiota analysis can help catch gestational diabetes

FAU’s Paulina DeVito awarded prestigious NSF Graduate Research Fellowship

Champions for change – Paid time off initiative just made clinical trials participation easier

Fentanyl detection through packaging

Prof. Eran Meshorer elected to EMBO for pioneering work in epigenetics

New 3D glacier visualizations provide insights into a hotter Earth

[Press-News.org] Futuristic copper foam batteries get more bang for the buck