Much battery research is purely academic and the suggestions gather dust. However, Stanley Whittinghams lithium battery from 1978 still has power after all these years. Although his Nobel Prize-winning efforts almost failed after batteries with pure lithium anodes sparked a series of laboratory fires. Later in 2015, he and colleague decided to put their original prototypes to the test.
Half the Power Remained in Stanley Whittinghams Lithium Battery
The Nobel Prize winner and a colleague scratched through their mementos, and found four unused, decades-old button lithium batteries. According to Inside Science these were “very expensive” and developed in the Exxon laboratory.
Moreover, “They were extremely well sealed, so air and things couldn’t contaminate them,” Stanley Whittingham remembers fondly. He approached Rutgers University in New Jersey who agreed to investigate how good Stanley Whittinghams lithium battery design really was. Quite incredibly, they found the vintage button cells were still in good shape after 35 years.
“They treated research workers like drilling an oil well.”
They Beat Modern Alkaline Batteries by an Impressive Margin
The vintage lithium batteries still retained over 50% of their energy. By comparison, alkaline batteries have a shelf life of just 10 Years. Furthermore, a solar rechargeable clock made in the 1970s with an Exxon lithium battery was still ticking.
At first, Stanley Whittinghams lithium battery used lightweight, high-voltage titanium-disulphide cathodes, and lithium metal anodes. However, he adopted lithium-aluminum anodes after the pure metal caused a number of laboratory fires. While the design did reach market only one customer, a Swiss watchmaker used it in their solar rechargeable timepieces. It took the combined efforts of John Goodenough and Akira Yoshino to perfect the current lithium-ion design.
Stanley Whittingham says “That now gives you a message. Good lithium batteries – I won’t say will last forever – but they will last for a very, very long time.”
Related
Lithium-Ion Battery History & Functions
Lithium Batteries Earn Nobel Prizes for Three
Preview Image: Stanley Whittingham at Exxon
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