American Scientists Make Great Leap in Battery Technology One of
the primary concerns with owning an electric vehicle is cost of
the battery, the range it offers, and the time it takes to
recharge. Those concerns will be significantly lessoned with the
development of a new lithium-ion battery. Designed by scientists
at Envia Systems, a US-based company, the new battery has
roughly twice the energy density of existing rechargeable
batteries. Such an innovation could greatly increase the range
of electric cars as well as cut the price of the battery packs
in half. The research conducted by Envia Systems was funded by a
$4 million federal grant through ARPA-Energy (Advanced Research
Projects Agency). The work was done at the Argonne National
Laboratory. The new battery can achieve an energy density of 400
watt-hours per kilogram, double that of existing rechargeable
batteries. The key was introducing manganese into the mix of
materials used in the cathode, the electrode where the lithium
ions congregate. Then, t