Faster, cleaner, cheaper—thanks to the researchers at Argonne National Laboratory, that’s what we can expect from the next generation of hybrid electric cars.
Lithium-ion technology is the only thing that can mimic what gasoline can do.
—Ilias Belharouak, Materials Scientist and Battery Specialist, Argonne
Argonne’s innovative work on the future of transportation will be an important focus of the facility’s Open House on Saturday, Aug. 29. Researchers at Argonne and elsewhere have quietly been making enormous improvements to the lithium-ion batteries used in plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, so that cars with an average gas mileage exceeding 100 miles per gallon are now a realistic prospect.
The battery materials under development will make plug-in hybrids safer, more efficient, and less expensive, according to Khalil Amine, the Group Leader for Technology Development. “You can get a lot of power and energy in small volume and weight, and that’s what everyone wants.”
Amine believes the Transportation Technology Center provides an ideal setting for the kind of work his team is doing. “We are taking advantage of all these facilities within Argonne. We can scale up, license, and patent. It’s very unique. Most national labs only focus on one area. Here, we are very much across-the-board.”
Visitors to Argonne’s Open House will see many facets of the facility’s automotive research, as well as displays on subjects ranging from supercomputing to climate change. Members of the community can view the omnivorous engine, designed to use a variety of alternative fuels, as well as the driving simulator at the Advanced Powertrain Research Facility, which allows researchers to test car components in a variety of simulated conditions. Visitors can also tour Argonne’s other cutting-edge research facilities, including the Advanced Photon Source, the Center for Nanoscale Materials, and the Argonne Wakefield Accelerator.
Technology taking off
The last few years have been a whirlwind for the lithium-ion battery team at Argonne. With Chevy slated to introduce the plug-in hybrid Volt in 2010, all eyes are on lithium-ion technology. “The technology is moving very fast,” Amine says.
Lithium-ion batteries, already commonly used in consumer electronics like cells phones and laptops, are widely believed to offer one of the most promising alternatives to gasoline engines. Because of their remarkable energy density, they are ideally suited for plug-in hybrids.
“Lithium-ion technology is the only thing that can mimic what gasoline can do,” says Ilias Belharouak, Materials Scientist and Battery Specialist at Argonne. The batteries provide the same speed and acceleration as gas-powered cars, but with drastically improved fuel efficiency. The batteries are designed to power a car for 40 miles without using gas.
Over a year, the fuel savings are dramatic, says Belharouak. The average engine uses 600 gallons of gas per year. Under ideal conditions, a car using lithium-ion technology might need as little as 80.
Lithium-ion batteries depend on shuttling lithium ions between a cathode and an anode. The challenge for Argonne’s researchers is to refine the materials used to make those components, making the batteries longer lasting, safer, cheaper, and more efficient.
Several promising approaches have emerged from the group’s research. One uses a mixed metal oxide cathode material rich in manganese for the cathode, decreasing the battery’s need for costly nickel and cobalt. The new material is not only cheaper to manufacture, it’s safer, says Gary Henriksen, manager of the Battery Technology Department. “The approach was to develop a new cathode material that was more stable by structurally integrating an inactive component with the active component.”
The group also has developed a new form of nano-phase lithium titanate anode material, which is relatively non-reactive. “The material is very stable, so you can minimize the safety issues associated with lithium-ion cells,” Henriksen says.
“The commitment is here”
Argonne’s materials quickly caught the attention of private industry. BASF, a prominent materials company, recently licensed the new cathode material. Researchers transferred their anode material to EnerDel, a lithium-ion battery manufacturer, as part of an ongoing technology transfer agreement.
Several of Argonne’s battery materials are already at work in the newest electric vehicles. Think, a Norwegian electric car company, uses technology pioneered at Argonne in its plug-in vehicles. Prototypes of the Chevy Volt feature batteries partially made from the manganese-rich cathode developed at Argonne.
For Ilias Belharouak, it’s gratifying to know that Argonne’s research is making such a significant impact on the car industry. And he believes the industry is finally ready to embrace the new technology. “Now it makes sense to change, because the need is here. … The commitment is here, and people are putting all these things together,” he says. “I have no doubt this chemistry will help you and me in the next five years.”
By Susie Allen, AB’09
