The near future seems certain to deliver massive change to humankind. Within a decade or so the only cars on the road will probably be powered by an electric motor and we will have achieved the age of the driverless car. Just as the internal combustion engine was reliant on petrol to achieve its dominance in personal transport, this coming electrical age is totally reliant on battery development to deliver distance in each charging cycle.
Right now, all our hope is concentrated on the Lithium-ion battery which still has a few outstanding problems, the least of which is its propensity to burst into flames without warning. We are warned that while computers and electrical devices with lithium-ion batteries may be carried in the cabin on aeroplanes, they must not be carried in luggage in the cargo hold. That risk is obvious.
There is also the problem of availability of the massive amount of raw materials needed to supply the quantity of lithium-ion batteries in our future. Lithium is a finite mineral and its price has been constantly rising and cobalt is another essential in this mode of battery production. Unfortunately, the main source of cobalt is the Democratic Republic of the Congo and this is engaged in a massive civil war. The price of cobalt has risen to $80,000 a tonne and may go much higher.
Both the car industry and the makers of solar roof panels will rejoice at the news that scientists at RMIT have developed an alternative to lithium-ion which shows great promise. They call it a " Proton battery " and its main ingredient is carbon, something that is both cheap and readily available in all parts of the world.
Creating a rechargeable batter from abundantly available low cost material is a massive breakthrough that may clear the main impediment to electric cars, and solve the problems on suppling electric power to our homes. If those with solar panels on their roofs were able to couple it with batteries to provide power overnight when the sun was not shining, they could be self sufficient and not need connection to the grid.
The exact procedure to produce rechargeable electricity is not fully explained, beyond saying that it is similar to the process that delivers hydrogen fuel. Importantly, it produces no emissions. There is the expectation that these batteries will deliver advanced technology which will be more than price competitive with lithium-ion competitors.
More importantly, the raw materials for batteries will be removed from the grip of becoming war loot in unstable parts of the world. Many civil wars are financed by enslaving the civil population to mine a product that brings a high price on the world market. The fast developing need for lithium-ion batteries was fuelling that situation.
It seems that the clever people at RMIT have made a breakthrough at exactly the right time with their development of a " clean rechargeable battery " just as the world is turning to a massive need for this medium !
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