Lithium-CO2 batteries, known for their potential to capture carbon dioxide while generating electricity, have just taken an important step towards commercial viability. Researchers at the University of Surrey have found a way to solve the main obstacles facing these technologies: low efficiency, rapid degradation and dependence on rare metals.
The breakthrough involves replacing expensive traditional catalysts with a much more affordable and easier to manufacture compound, cesium phosphomolybdate (CPM). This material allows the necessary electrochemical reactions to occur with less energy, eliminating the overpotential that until now limited the performance of batteries that “breathe” CO₂.
Economical catalyst, efficient charging and long life
Using laboratory tests and computational simulations using density functional theory (DFT), the scientists verified that CPM not only facilitates the capture and release of CO₂ during charge cycles, but also enables 2.5 times more energy storage than conventional lithium-ion batteries. In addition, it maintains operation for more than 100 cycles without significant loss of efficiency.
The CPM acts as an energy slope flattener, making loading and unloading much more efficient.
Siddharth Gadkari, Ph.D., a chemical engineer and one of the authors of the study, explained.
Impact of lithium-CO2 batteries
Not only could this technology drastically reduce emissions from industrial sources and vehicles, but it also opens up possibilities for extreme environments. Given that Mars’ atmosphere is 95% composed of CO₂, the researchers believe these batteries could be useful in future space missions.
Daniel Commandeur, another of the study’s authors, noted that the use of accessible materials without the need for rare metals is key to scaling this technology: “The simplicity of CPM gives us room to design even better catalysts in the future.
With further research into how the catalyst interacts with the other components of the battery, this finding could mark the beginning of a new generation of energy storage systems that are sustainable, functional and storage systems that are sustainable, functional and adapted to the challenges of climate change. This breakthrough was originally reported in ScienceDaily
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Source and photo: University of Surrey
