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An Overview of the battery technology that powers our mobile society.
Lithium
Periodic Table Symbol: Li Atomic Weight: 3 (light!) Like sodium and potassium, an alkali metal. (Group 1 #s 1 through 7) Highly reactive, with a high energy density. Used to treat manic-depression because it is particularly effective at calming a person in a manic state.
Disadvantages of Li-Ion
EXPENSIVE -- 40% more than NiCd. DELICATE -- battery temp must be monitored from within (which raises the price), and sealed particularly well. REGULATIONS -- when shipping Li-Ion batteries in bulk (which also raises the price). Class 9 miscellaneous hazardous material UN Manual of Tests and Criteria (III, 38.3)
The Intersection
In terms of weight and size, batteries have become one of the limiting factors in the development of electronic devices. http://www.nanowerk.com/spotlight/spotid=5210.php The problem with...lithium batteries is that none of the existing electrode materials alone can deliver all the required performance characteristics including high capacity, higher operating voltage, and long cycle life. Consequently, researchers are trying to optimize available electrode materials by designing new composite structures on the nanoscale.
The Director of the Institute of Chemistry at the Chinese Academy of Sciences published a paper in February describing the novel carbon nanocomposite above as a promising [electrode] material for lithium-ion batteries.
Another example...
The storage capacity of a Li-Ion battery is limited by how much lithium can be held in the battery's anode, which is typically made of carbon. Silicon has a much higher capacity than carbon, but also has a drawback. Silicon placed in a battery swells as it absorbs positively charged lithium atoms during charging, then shrinks during use as the lithium ion is drawn out of the silicon. This cycle typically causes the silicon to pulverize, degrading the performance of the battery.
Photos taken by a scanning electron microscope of silicon nanowires before (left) and after (right) absorbing lithium. Both photos were taken at the same magnification. The work is described in High-performance lithium battery anodes using silicon nanowires, published online Dec. 16 in Nature Nanotechnology.
Nano + Li-Ion = ?
Nanotechnology and Li-Ion applications in the commercial sector are apparent... lighter, more powerful batteries increase user mobility and equipment life. DeWalt 36volt cordless power tools Nanotechnology & Li-Ion applications in the residential sector are not so obvious... HVAC system batteries? Micro-generated energy storage?
Links to References
http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/battery.htm http://everything2.com/e2node/Lithium%2520ion%2520battery http://www.batteryuniversity.com http://news-service.stanford.edu/news/2008/january9/nanowire010908.html http://www.nano.gov/html/research/industry.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buckminster_Fuller http://www.nanowerk.com/spotlight/spotid=5210.php