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'Instantly Rechargeable' Battery Could Change the Future of Electric Cars (sciencedaily.com)
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Science Daily: A technology developed by Purdue researchers could provide an "instantly rechargeable" method that is safe, affordable and environmentally friendly for recharging electric and hybrid vehicle batteries through a quick and easy process similar to refueling a car at a gas station. John Cushman, Purdue University distinguished professor of earth, atmospheric and planetary science and a professor of mathematics, presented the research findings "Redox reactions in immiscible-fluids in porous media -- membraneless battery applications" at the recent International Society for Porous Media 9th International Conference in Rotterdam, Netherlands. Cushman co-founded Ifbattery LLC (IF-battery) to further develop and commercialize the technology. "Designing and building enough of these recharging stations requires massive infrastructure development, which means the energy distribution and storage system is being rebuilt at tremendous cost to accommodate the need for continual local battery recharge," said Eric Nauman, co-founder of Ifbattery and a Purdue professor of mechanical engineering, basic medical sciences and biomedical engineering. "Ifbattery is developing an energy storage system that would enable drivers to fill up their electric or hybrid vehicles with fluid electrolytes to re-energize spent battery fluids much like refueling their gas tanks." Mike Mueterthies, Purdue doctoral teaching and research assistant in physics and the third co-founder of Ifbattery, said the flow battery system makes the Ifbattery system unique. "Other flow batteries exist, but we are the first to remove membranes which reduces costs and extends battery life," Mueterthies said. Ifbattery's membrane-free battery demonstrates other benefits as well. "Membrane fouling can limit the number of recharge cycles and is a known contributor to many battery fires," Cushman said. "Ifbattery's components are safe enough to be stored in a family home, are stable enough to meet major production and distribution requirements and are cost effective." For the visual learners, Purdue Research Park has uploaded a video about Ifbattery's "instantly rechargeable" method.
Wait.. you fill it with Brawndo?
Sig ?
It is a flow battery and the idea has been around for a long time.
The biggest problem is the nasty nature and quantity of chemicals used
Of course, it's what cars crave!
The new company named Ifbattery is still in it's infancy because they are seeking funding to begin making prototypes. So battery of the future is right because it's at least 10 years off at best.
Anons need not reply. Questions end with a question mark.
A capacitor separates charge. A battery uses a chemical reaction. The speed is just a side effect.
Don't be stupid and lazy. We will definitely have electric cars that are cheaper to manufacture, cheaper to operate, and cheaper to maintain than ICE's in the very near future (this coming decade, guaranteed).
Any kind of mandates are just going to slow down the industry which is already on trajectory to exceed our ambitious desires.
YOU are not smarter than the people who are building these things, so stop pretending like you have more information than they do.
My God, it's Full of Source!
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No, it is a real battery. A variant on a flow cell (look it up) that has the novel ability to work without membranes.
I thought that was a major feature expected for the Tesla Model 3.
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I think the idea is to just replace the electrolyte. The electrolyte gets charged while you're not there.
a,e,i,o,u and sometimes w and y (at be if of up cwm by)
The battery in a Tesla Model S weighs 1,200 pounds. Good luck coming up with a practical way to remove and replace a battery that weighs half as much as a Nissan Versa, not to mention a practical way to store hundreds or even thousands of them while they charge. Sorry, but offline charging of EV batteries is completely and utterly impractical.
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As I stated in my previous post we see this cost of wind and solar being cheaper than coal is only true if the fossil fuel back up remain in place (the coal plants already exists as you point out). If the goal is to go beyond nibbling at the edges of coal burning and replace coal completely then solar energy will have to be cheap enough to make up for the infrastructure needed to account that the sun does not always shine.
This can mean shifting the sunlight in time with storage systems, in space through transmission lines, or more likely a combination of the two. Solar is not cheaper than coal because there needs to be a large build out of additional infrastructure for it to replace coal.
We've seen a number of nations try to reduce their carbon output and reduce the cost of energy with a combination of wind, solar, and fossil fuel backups. Apparently because nuclear power is not popular right now. The result has been increases in costs and increases in carbon output.
It does not matter WHY coal is cheap, only that it has set the standard for other sources to compete with. If solar cannot do that then it's not viable. This is all because people chose to stop using nuclear power. This is evidence in support of my claim that any plan to reduce carbon output that does not include nuclear power is a fantasy.
I know of places with an abundance of hydro, sun, and wind, that have claimed to be carbon neutral. That's great until you realize that they have no heavy industry and this is due to a very unique geography. These tropical nations can do this but the USA, UK, Germany, and so on are not able to do the same. They will need nuclear fission or some technology we don't have yet and may never obtain.
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From TFS: "but we are the first to remove membranes which reduces costs and extends battery life"
The battery life of flow batteries is already ahead of all others which is why they are being seen as a potentially better alternative in grid applications.
From TFS: "Membrane fouling can limit the number of recharge cycles and is a known contributor to many battery fires"
As above the recharge cycles of flow batteries are already well above every other type of battery. And fire? Well the fact that flow batteries don't catch fire is one of their key selling points.
Is this just marketing fluff that is using buzzwords to try and get across? The big problem with flow batteries is their energy density at best is currently less than half of an equivalent lithium battery system. This is a far more important problem to fix.
Mind you I do like what they are talking about. One of the big problems with electric cars is the grid connections for fast chargers. It makes the highway rest stop model of petrol stations difficult to convert to electric. All you need is 3 fast chargers in use at once and you're using more power than the currently biggest petrol station in Europe, and many of the highway stops are in the middle of nowhere which don't lend themselves to easy electrical infrastructure upgrades.
there are electric trucks.. https://nikolamotor.com/one http://www.wired.co.uk/article... http://www.emoss.biz/electric-...
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You're missing the point.
This is a way that you can recharge the cell by extracting a "used" liquid from the vehicle, and pouring in a "new" liquid. Think of it as a liquid battery, where you swap out most of the battery whenever you fill up.
So the energy density problem is solved the same way as with gasoline - instead of a big wire pushing electrons, you pour in an energy dense liquid.
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Here's a practical question: Why didn't you read, or understand, the summary?
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You need to provide a power source capable of supplying 6MW. You need a cable capable of carrying 6MW to the car, which is going to require industrial equipment to lift because a person won't be strong enough, and wouldn't be safe anyway.
As others have explained, this battery can be charged simply by replacing the liquid inside. But even if you wanted to charge it electrically, you don't need industrial equipment. You could make a cable that's not harder to lift as a traditional gas pump hose, rated for 20000 volts and 300 Amps to get your 6 MW. And if you could wait 2 minutes, and fill the tank half way, that could be reduced to 10kV and 150A. A well constructed cable would be much safer than the heavy gasoline spraying system we have now.
Most charging is done while the owner is doing something else, like shopping or sleeping or working.
Except when you want to make a longer trip.
I presume the used electrolyte can somehow be restored to its former usefulness in these batteries. Can that be done at the "charging" station or must it be stored in large tanks and then transported to some nearby industrial plant? Otherwise, it will need to be disposed of as hazardous waste.
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