Thought you folks might find this informing.
“THAT FINAL ITEM: STUDYING HOW A RECHARGEABLE BATTERY WORKS
And finally this week, have you ever wondered what happens inside a rechargeable battery? If so you are not alone as we hear from Amateur Radio Newsline’s Cheryl Lasek, K9BIK:
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Scientists are still searching for clues to the processes that takes place inside rechargeable batteries. This as part of the ongoing quest to create more powerful, longer-lasting and cheaper energy storage devices.
Now a team of researchers with the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in cooperation with other research centers have discovered how to unlock some of the secrets hidden within rechargeable batteries.
So far most of the research into batteries has focused on studying the electrolyte interphase layer. This is a coating that accumulates on an electrode’s surface and dramatically influences battery performance. But until recently the research has been limited because most high-powered microscope work is done under dry conditions while most batteries contain liquids. As such the liquid has slowed the ability to conduct this type of research.
To overcome this, researchers have created a special dry battery for their tests. The battery contains one dime size silicon electrode and one lithium electrode sandwiching a bath of solid electrolyte. This configuration permits the flow of ions but still allow microscopic study which in turn has allowed the team to study the electrodes behavior.
The researchers say this new study could be the next step in the ongoing quest to create longer lasting rechargeable batteries.
For the Amateur Radio Newsline, I’m Cheryl Lasek, K9BIK, in Zion, Illinois.”
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