Chinese scientists may have found battery that could double electric vehicles’ range

Chinese scientists have developed a promising new battery technology that could dramatically increase the driving range of electric vehicles and allow them to perform more reliably in cold weather.Lithium batteries are essential components in products such as smartphones and EVs, but at present they are approaching their energy density ceiling, which limits the scope to improve their performance.The most common types of liquid-state battery – Lithium iron phosphate and ternary Lithium – are nearing their theoretical limits of around 350 watt-hours per kg, prompting many companies to switch their focus to next-generation solid-state batteries.But researchers from Nankai University and the Shanghai Institute of Space Power Sources said they had pushed the boundaries further by developing an electrolyte that increased the energy density of liquid Lithium batteries to 700 watt-hours per kg in lab tests, according to research published in Nature on Wednesday.“This breakthrough could double the capacity of existing Lithium batteries without increasing their size or weight,” a report by state broadcaster CCTV said on Thursday.“Our batteries have more than twice the energy density of ordinary batteries. Electric vehicles with a current range of 500km could travel more than 1,000km [600 miles] on a single charge using our batteries,” lead researcher Chen Jun, from Nankai University, told CCTV.