Development history and progress of batteries

Development history and progress of batteries

To understand their contributions, one must first understand the battery development mileage.



The basic principle of a battery is to use a "highly active" metal material to make the anode (i.e. negative electrode -), while a more stable material is used to make the cathode (i.e. positive electrode+). The anode material loses electrons due to Coulomb force (reduction reaction) and flows to the cathode to obtain electrons (oxidation reaction). Inside the battery (electrolyte), anions from the cathode flow to the anode and combine with cations, forming a circuit and generating electrical energy.





It is precisely because this flow is essentially a chemical reaction that follows the law of energy conservation. If work is done on external electrical appliances (such as mobile phones, cameras, etc.), it means that the energy generated by the reaction is "absorbed" by the electrical appliances, achieving relative balance. If no electrical appliances are used, but the circuit is connected, it means that energy is nowhere to be used and will be converted into heat energy at a very fast speed, because electrons move at the same speed as light, which is why when a battery experiences a short circuit, it will generate intense heat or even burn and explode.



Once the internal chemical energy of the battery is depleted, the battery is useless. So a rechargeable battery, which can "reduce" (reset) internal chemical reactions through external electrification, requires the selection of special materials and designs that can "perfectly" restore the original state, allowing the battery to regain chemical energy.




(Volt stack battery, image from Visual Capitalist)

In 1799, Italian physicist Alessandro Volta invented the first battery (Vlotaic Pile Volt Reactor). He made the battery using zinc sheets (anode) and copper sheets (cathode), as well as paper sheets (electrolyte) soaked in salt water, to prove that electricity can be artificially manufactured.




(Daniel Battery, image from Visual Capitalist)

About 40 years later, it was thought that British chemist John Frederic Daniel solved the problem of hydrogen gas bubbles generated during the discharge of the volt stack by changing the battery form (due to chemical reactions producing hydrogen gas, which caused poor internal contact in the battery), and at this point, the battery could reach a voltage of 1V.




(Lead acid battery, image from Visual Capitalist)

In 1850, French physicist Gaston Plant é invented a lead-acid battery (with lead as the anode, lead oxide as the cathode, and sulfuric acid solution as the electrolyte). Using lead not only achieved extremely low costs, but also provided a voltage of 12V and was able to charge and cycle. This type of battery is widely used, including in car batteries and early electric vehicles. As of 2014, approximately 44.7 million lead-acid batteries were sold worldwide.




(Nickel cadmium battery, image from Visual Capitalist)

In 1899, Waldemar Jungner, a Swede, invented the nickel cadmium battery (with nickel as the cathode and cadmium as the anode, using liquid electrolyte), which was commonly used as a rechargeable battery for walkman and four-wheel drive vehicles in childhood, laying the foundation for modern electronic technology. However, this type of battery has a huge drawback, which is that the older generation often tells you the reason why the charging pool must be used up before charging. Due to its chemical characteristics, if the battery is charged before it is fully charged, it will experience "cadmium poisoning" phenomenon, causing the battery to "remember" the "minimum charge", leading to a decrease in the next full charge, so it is gradually eliminated from the market.




(Alkaline battery, image from Visual Capitalist)

After 1950, Canadian engineer Lewis Urry invented the very common alkaline battery (zinc as the anode, magnesium oxide as the cathode, and potassium hydroxide as the electrolyte, which is the name of alkaline battery). It is a commonly used disposable battery in daily life, and the vast majority of them are non rechargeable. Of course, there are also specially designed alkaline batteries that can be charged, and even display the current battery level by pressing the battery surface. More than 10 billion pieces have been sold globally.




(Nickel hydrogen battery, image from Visual Capitalist)

In 1989, the first commercial nickel hydrogen battery (with metal hydride as the anode or hydrogen storage alloy and nickel hydroxide as the cathode) was introduced, which took over 20 years to develop and was sponsored by Daimler Benz and Volkswagen Germany. Through the new formula, nickel hydrogen batteries have increased energy density and reduced pollution compared to nickel cadmium batteries. More importantly, nickel hydrogen batteries do not have a "memory effect", so there is no need to worry about usage issues like nickel cadmium batteries. In addition to being widely used in digital products, it was also adopted by early Toyota Prius hybrid cars.




(Lithium ion battery, image from Visual Capitalist)

In 1991, Sony launched the first commercial lithium-ion battery (with graphite anode, lithium compound cathode, and lithium salt soluble electrode solution in organic solvents). Due to the high energy density and different formulations of lithium-ion batteries, they can adapt to different usage environments and are now widely used.




(Left longitudinal represents current, right represents unit power, and horizontal represents energy density)

The above-mentioned various batteries have gone through a history of 200 years before reaching the lithium battery stage, with the aim of being lighter, smaller, and higher in energy. During this period, many people have made tremendous efforts to achieve this.



The Nobel Prize in Chemistry

Lithium was discovered by Johan August Arfwedson in 1817. The characteristics of lithium determine that it is very suitable for making batteries with high energy density and high voltage.



However, due to its high activity, lithium can react violently with water or air, leading to combustion and explosion. How to "tame" it has become the key to battery development. In addition, lithium is undoubtedly used as an anode, but finding a suitable material for cathode has become a research goal being pursued.




(Lithium reacts violently with water)

In the 1970s, an oil crisis broke out, and M. Stanley Whittingham decided to focus on developing new energy technologies to break free from the constraints of oil.




M. Stanley Whittingham

At first, he focused on studying superconductors, but accidentally discovered a substance containing enormous energy that could serve as the cathode of lithium batteries.





After years of experimentation and research, M. Stanley Wittingham ultimately developed a lithium battery using lithium titanium sulfide (LixTiS2) as the cathode material and metallic lithium as the anode material. Its voltage can reach 2.5V and it can be cycled 1100 times with almost no loss of power. However, due to the presence of metallic lithium in the anode material and its high activity, the battery is very unstable and prone to combustion or explosion.




(Lithium dendrite phenomenon)

At that time, "Big Brother" used this type of battery. The Canadian company Moli Energy, which owned the technology, recalled the product less than six months after it was launched due to fire and explosion issues worldwide, and it never recovered. Later, it was acquired by Japanese NEC company. However, after several years of testing and exploration, NEC company has finally figured out the main cause of the problem. During the use process, "lithium dendrites" may occur in the anode material metal, causing deformation of the anode material and potentially causing short circuits when it comes into contact with the cathode material. Although the cause was found, a solution was delayed.



So this battery has encountered huge obstacles on the path of commercial research and development.



After the problem arose, scientists remembered the theory proposed by R ü dorff in 1938, the "ion transfer cell configuration" method. So it was decided to use a material that could replace metal lithium as the anode material - graphite. The purpose of the anode material is to release electrons, and the characteristics of graphite can store electrons between carbon elements. Although graphite has lower activity (electron storage ability) compared to metal lithium, it is safer.



Based on this development, John B. Goodenough is also studying the improvement of cathode materials, predicting that lithium oxide compounds are more suitable than lithium sulfide compounds.