Honda, partner to commercialize magnesium batteryhttps://asia.nikkei.com/Tech-Science/Tech/Honda-partner-to-commercialize-magnesium-battery
TOKYO -- A research-and-development outfit and Honda Motor have developed what they claim to be the world's first practical magnesium-based rechargeable battery, according to sources.
The new power pack could be a game-changer -- our smartphones and other devices would be able to hold a charge for longer. And for gadget-makers, magnesium costs 96% less than lithium, which most of today's batteries are made of.
The magnesium battery developers hope to start selling their alternative by 2018, the sources said.
The R&D body and Honda Motor will officially announce their battery next month at a scientific meeting in Chiba, near Tokyo.
The prefectural Saitama Industrial Technology Center, or Saitec, in Kawaguchi, Saitama Prefecture, led the development. Honda R&D assessed the technology's viability in the prefectural city of Wako.
The developers expect to first commercialize the technology in smartphones and other portable devices.
Li-ion batteries have been around for decades now, and tech companies have long struggled to pack more power into them so their gadgets can run longer on a charge.
The Saitec-Honda team might have found a solution to this. It has confirmed that a magnesium prototype battery performs as well as a Li-ion counterpart in terms of life and safety. The developers are now working with a number of battery makers to come up with a way to mass produce the battery.
Around the world, developers trying to fit magnesium into rechargeable batteries have run into the same obstacle: the material's recharging performance quickly deteriorates as it is charged and drained, charged and drained.
To solve this, the developers introduced a new material, vanadium oxide, at the positive pole, making it easier for ions to move between it and the magnesium-based negative pole. The vanadium oxide allows for more charges without deterioration, the sources said. For safety, the team added an organic substance that lowers the risk of magnesium catching fire.
Magnesium is an inflammable substance.
If future advances can make magnesium batteries more heat-resistant and raise their capacity, the power packs could also find their way into hybrid and electric vehicles, according to the sources.