USA: Lab develops cheaper and greener electrolyte

Advanced Battery Technology, Nov 2000

Electronic Design says researchers at Brookhaven National Laboratory in Upton, New York, have received a patent for an electrolyte that can be used in rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, popularly used in cell phones, laptop computers, and other portable devices. A typical electrolyte's salt component is expensive and toxic, making Li-ion batteries unsuitable for electric and hybrid vehicles and other larger applications. The lab, though, has developed a method for overcoming these limitations.

Brookhaven's team has been investigating ways to improve the electrical conductivity of electrolytes that contain less expensive and less toxic salts. So far it has designed and synthesized a very helpful series of boron-based compounds. The researchers have added these compounds to the targeted electrolytes, raising their electrical conductivity to levels comparable to electrolytes currently in use.

"There are some improvements that need to be made," says Xiao-Qing Yang, one of the project's scientists. Currently the team is conducting studies at Brookhaven's National Synchotron Light Source. "By understanding how these additives work with the salt and the electrolyte at the molecular level," Yang explains, "we can modify their molecular structures to improve their performance."

For more details, visit Brookhaven's website: www.bnl.gov