Solid-state batteries with a disordered arrangement of metals in electrolytes enhance the performance of the battery by increasing the flow of ions which create an electrical charge, a research study has found.

Material experts recently discovered that solid-state batteries use solid electrolytes cutting the dependence on a multi-metal arrangement like in lithium-ion batteries.

Experts at the U.S. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBL) said they have discovered such solid electrolytes in a collaborative experiment with scientists at Florida State University and the University of California, Berkeley.

Solid-state batteries possess high energy density and enhanced safety which according to the researchers makes them a potential fit for electric vehicles.

Unlike the largely developed liquid electrolytes for commercial batteries, batteries with solid electrolytes are less prone to overheating, fire, and loss of charge.

The study titled ‘High-entropy mechanism to boost ionic conductivity’ is published in Science journal.

The study points out that specific metals currently required in making these batteries are not available in large quantities, ultimately making solid-state batteries costly.

Electrolyte with multiple metals

In their study, the scientists arranged the metals like titanium, zirconium, and tin in the top row of the solid electrolyte while the lower row consisted of hafnium, phosphorous, and oxygen.

They synthesized and tested several lithium-ion and sodium-ion materials and noted the behavior of multiple mixed metals that can be easily sourced.

The teams further used a method called density-functional theory on a supercomputer and found that the movement of ions increased to create an electric charge in the solid-state battery.

They claimed that the ionic conductivity of their solid-state battery with diverse metals performed several orders of magnitude faster than those with single-metal.

“With our new approach to solid-state batteries, you don’t have to give up affordability for performance. Our work is the first to solve this problem by designing a solid electrolyte with not just one metal but with a team of affordable metals,” said co-first author Yan Zeng, a staff scientist in Berkeley Lab’s Materials Sciences Division.

In another study conducted recently, experts at the Illinois Institute of Technology and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory said they have developed a lithium-air battery design that can power domestic airplanes and long-haul trucks. The main new component in this lithium-air battery is a solid electrolyte instead of the usual liquid variety.

In January 2023, researchers at the ARC Training Centre for Future Energy Storage Technologies claimed to have found that the suppression of the lithium metal creep (Li-creep) under controlled conditions can extend the cell cycle life by 40%, resulting in reduced deformation levels of lithium.