Google Battles For Better Batteries

An anonymous reader writes: The Wall Street Journal reports that Google's X research lab has joined the quest for better batteries. The company has at least 20 projects that depend on batteries, from Google Glass to self-driving cars and drones. Thus, it makes sense for them to try developing new battery technology. "At Google, Dr. Bhardwaj's group is trying to advance current lithium-ion technology and the cutting-edge solid-state batteries for consumer devices. ... In a February presentation to an industry conference, Dr. Bhardwaj described how solid-state, thin-film batteries could be used in smartphones and other mobile devices that are thinner, bendable, wearable and even implantable in the human body. ... For the contact lens, the technology is safer because it doesn't use flammable electrolyte liquid, Dr. Bhardwaj's presentation explained."

Comments

Re:Does anybody realize

[dixonpete]

Tesla has done a lot of work in this area, see: http://www.extremetech.com/ext...

Re:Does anybody realize

[pushing-robot]

* Batteries have far lower energy density than gasoline (and even most explosives).

* Batteries have a maximum discharge rate, which means they can't release all their energy instantaneously under practical conditions. In other words, instead of detonating like a firecracker, they tend to just spray fire and sparks for a few minutes like a fountain.

* "Real" explosives are not hard to acquire or manufacture, and bags of fertilizer and cans of fuel oil cost far less than an equivalent mass of Li-Ion batteries.