Cranfield University is a UK postgraduate, research-based institution. It focuses on science, engineering and technology. And is moreover partnering a European-based project to develop lithium-sulfur batteries for electric vehicles. Intelligent Transport confirms the ‘Lithium-Sulfur for Safe Road Electrification’ (LISA) team Cranfield joined wants electric vehicle adoption ‘on a mass scale’
This Lithium-Sulfur Batteries Project Could Take 43 Months
Fifteen organizations from right across Europe are working on a project that could produce a ‘holy grail’ of batteries. Although we have no doubt another enhancement will piggy-back over it soon.
The Project LISA lithium-sulfur batteries will be high-energy, safe Li-S cells, with ‘hybrid, solid-state non-flammable electrolytes’. Hence they seem set to touch many of the bases lithium-ion tripped over. There are many apparent advantages to this innovative new approach. Because Intelligent Transport believes the batteries will be half the weight of lithium-ion and with a ‘higher theoretical density’.
Principles of Lithium-Sulfur Batteries
Lithium Sulfur Already Has a Respectable Pedigree
Furthermore Wikipedia confirms the weight advantage is due to the lower atomic weight of lithium. And the moderate weight of sulfur. The batteries were chosen to power the longest and highest-altitude airplane flight in 2018. This was because they are ‘about the density of water’.
The technology is “fully compatible with mass production by green and low-energy processes”. Hence lithium-sulfur batteries seem an attractive solution for mass electric transport. Despite all these attractions not many companies have been able to take the technology to the consumer market though.
The European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program has been funding the project since 2014. Its website says this is “the biggest EU Research and Innovation program ever”. With €80 billion of funding available for LISA, it seems there is political will and faith to see it through.
Related
What are Lithium-Sulfur Batteries?
Lithium Battery Advance for Sulfur Electrode
Preview Image: Assembling a Lithium-Sulfur Storage Cell at Argonne
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