Stanford researchers have found a way to use silicon nanowires to reinvent the rechargeable lithium-ion batteries that power laptops, iPods, video cameras, cell phones, and countless other devices.The new technology, developed through research led by Yi Cui, assistant professor of materials science and engineering, produces 10 times the amount of electricity of existing lithium-ion, known as Li-ion, batteries. A laptop that now runs on battery for two hours could operate for 20 hours, a boon to ocean-hopping business travelers. The lithium is stored in a forest of tiny silicon nanowires, each with a diameter one-thousandth the thickness of a sheet of paper. The nanowires inflate four times their normal size as they soak up lithium. It is claimed that nanowires can be grown on a stainless steel substrate, providing an excellent electrical connection.
Similarly research by post-doctoral Researcher Jiyoung Oh and Research Scientist Mikhail “Mike” Kozlov at UT Dallas’ NanoTech Institute offers tantalizing insights into a new, lightweight, reliable means of delivering power via the mighty upercapacitor.Supercapacitors are electronic components that can be charged and counted on to store energy reliably for long periods.Supercapacitors are created using “paper” sheets of single-walled carbon nanotubes embedded with a special polymer called polypyrrole.
At Drexel University Chmiola and his advisor is Yury Gogotsi are working on a high efficiency energy storage devices using supercapacitors. Supercapacitors exploit the electrostatic separation between electrolyte ions (an atom or group of atoms with a net electric charge) and high surface area electrodes, typically carbon by finding the optimal pore size for supercapacitor performance, while minimizing the effects of constricting the ions to small pores.