Scientists from the Faculty of Chemistry of the Warsaw University of Technology under the supervision of Dr Eng. Leszek Niedzicki have developed a new electrolyte that can even triple the life of an electric car battery. His team is also working on non-flammable cells in the case of an accident.

By 2026, the global battery market is expected to reach a value of nearly $ 174 billion. It is driven by consumer electronics, the development of electromobility and the energy storage market.

Dr Eng. Leszek Niedzicki explains that today’s humanity is actually a battery-powered civilization. Almost all new technologies that enter the market are based on batteries that are used everywhere, e.g. when driving a bus or an electric car; using headphones, mice and laptops. There are already new solutions for the first battery-powered trains, ferries and small electrically powered planes, so this trend will only grow.

Lithium-ion batteries consist of three main components: cathode, anode and electrolyte. The scientists from the Warsaw University of Technology explain that electrolytes in the last 30 years of lithium-ion batteries on the market, or actually from the moment of their creation, were based on one technology. All other components changed but the electrolyte was unchanged.

A new electrolyte has been developed at the Warsaw University of Technology, with the use of a less toxic material, which triples the cell’s life. It can also operate at much higher temperatures, even up to 90 ° C. According to Polish scientists, it is only the second such technology in the world and the first in Europe.

Batteries using this electrolyte are already on the market. However, due to trade secrets, scientists are reluctant to mention specific brands that use them in their products. They only revealed that, for example, more expensive smartphone models are equipped with them.

Adrian Andrzejewski