Graphene Battery Technology

Graphene Battery Technology

Graphene battery technologies are the next groundbreaking technology in the battery space. It allows us to use our favourite electronic device until we get enough of it without needing to look for a charging port. Yes, it is that good.

Graphene Battery Technology is so advanced that with the development of this technology we may witness the new era of the smartphone experience. The era when smartphones become more wireless as we won’t have to spend much time connecting our phones to the charger.

Background

Although battery technologies are pretty good days and they have come a long way. But one thing many of us want is even longer lasting battery capacity. So that we don’t have to charge our smartphones and smartwatches every day.

Our requirements:

• We want our laptops to run a full day or even two days on a single charge.
• Also, need electric vehicles to be very efficient and reliable to the point that they could be charged very quickly and could take us a long distance in one full charge.
• We desire to see more and more use of electric buses and other means of transport run my electric battery.

To make all these possible, we need more capable battery technology than currently used lithium-ion batteries.

Introduction

There is a massive wave of technological development. It is certain that the component that is used to power the majority of electronic items needs to be developed too.

In other words, the battery needs to be further developed. Developed in the sense that it lasts longer, able to hold more power and charge faster. Since cells are used in a variety of items nowadays, ranging from mobile phones to smartwatches and even cars.

Lithium-ion batteries

However, the Lithium-ion batteries that we currently use are not good enough as per the standard of today’s technological advancement. With the mobile phones getting more extensive and more powerful, we need more capable batteries in our phones so that they last longer than a day in one charge. We want electric cars to be able to take us a long distance in a single charge. Hence, to meet all our needs in this day and age, there is a new battery technology made from graphene.

Basically, graphene is an ultra-thin layer of graphite. They are an excellent conductor of electricity due to this, batteries made from graphene can charge quickly and also pass high current situation as well. This means batteries made from graphene technology can last longer than the lithium-ion batteries as they are more relaxed in a confined space such as smartphones.

Making of Graphene Battery

Graphene battery is made with dual electrodes and a single electrolyte solution to enable the conveyance of ions. It has a mixture of graphene as well as solid-state metal acting as a cathode.  They are dipped in an electrolyte solution, making them highly conductive of electricity and heat.

Here, graphene is used as a foundation to support the Sulphur ions which eliminate plenty of the associated issues in Sulphur cells. Graphene’s sturdy nature, high electrical conductivity and top thermal solidity make the battery durable and more reliable.

Advantages Graphene Battery

• Since graphene is an excellent conductor of electricity contributes to the fact that they can charge quickly. This means you can charge your 3000 milliamp-hours (mAh) battery in about 15 minutes. Also, you don’t have to wait 1 hour in an electric charging station when your electric car runs out of battery, and you can just charge for 15 minutes and have sufficient battery for you to reach your destination.
• The graphene battery lasts longer. This is because it runs cooler as it has a high current conducting capacity. Batteries die faster because they run too hot, but this is not the case in the graphene made batteries. Hence, they have a comparatively longer lifetime than lithium-ion batteries.
• Graphene is one of the thinnest materials. Hence the batteries made from them are also very thin and compact while also being robust. Therefore, they are thin, compact, but very strong.
• Graphene made batteries have very high electricity storage capacity. So, they can be used to store a lot of electricity for future use. And in electrical devices, they can be used to hold a high amount of electric power for long-lasting battery life. 

Some bonus benefits

• It is a good conductor of electricity as well as heat, hence charging and the usage of battery power is very smooth and efficient.
• Graphene batteries are safer as they are more stable as well as resilient to overheating or overcharging. This means your battery won’t degrade due to overcharging and it won’t blow up due to overheating.
• It can be used to make supercapacitors which are more than a hundred times more capable than a standard capacitor. Hence, it can charge, discharge and hold an enormous amount of electric current.

Disadvantages Graphene Battery

• Graphene batteries do not consist of a bandgap, which is the interval between valance and conduction band. Hence, there is still no way to turn off the battery to date.
• It is validated that graphene gives away a certain kind of toxic properties such as spiked edges that can penetrate cell membranes and which can cause severe damages.

Application of Graphene Battery

Graphene batteries can be used in various fields across the electronics and technological field area. It can be used for energy storage for energy generated from turbines, windmills or solar energy because it has a high energy holding capacity. This also qualifies them to be used in electric cars and other electronic devices where a high amount of electricity is needed. It can also be used in electric powered buses which makes transportation eco-friendly as well as cost-effective.

On the other hand, graphene batteries are very thin and compact due to which it can also be used in smaller electronic items such as smartwatches, mobile phones and tablets, among others. Since it runs cool in cramped spaces, it also has a prolonged lifetime before it finally becomes useless. This means you do not need to replace batteries in your electronic devices from time to time.

It can also be used in big factories where a very high amount of energy is required so that in case the primary power supply is down; this battery can be used to run the factory. These batteries can power huge machines while being very safe as it can handle a massive load of heat and electricity flow. This property of graphene batteries also allows the use of these batteries to make supercapacitors which are upwards of a hundred times more potent than a regular capacitor. In the present day and age, supercapacitors are more favoured than an electrochemical battery for various uses.

Future of Graphene Batteries

So, what can we expect out of the graphene batteries in the future? Shortly, Graphene batteries may enable smartphones and tablets to be slenderer while providing comparatively better battery power. They can also allow a high-speed device to devise charging. As these batteries are capable of supporting massive currents and lightening quick recharge as well as discharge, they could enable electronic devices to charge each other at a faster rate.

We might also witness graphene batteries replacing other battery technology for storing an enormous amount of energy. So, it could meet all the energy requirements all over the world.

Imagine plugging your phone for 15 minutes, and it goes from 0 to 100 per cent battery just like that. Or using your smartphone or tablets for three days without needing to charge it. Imagine plugging your electric car to the power source overnight, and it can run for 1500 kilometres without needing to charge in between. All this can be enabled in future with the use of graphene batteries. Along with this, we can make a phone with a very slim but capable battery so that we could fit other technologies inside the phone where previously used to be occupied by the battery.

However, consumer electronics do not use graphene batteries as of now. This is because it has not been fully developed to be used in electronics for the general public. However, Samsung Electronics is testing out the phones powered by graphene batteries so that they could use these batteries in their future smartphones.

Conclusion

All in all, graphene batteries are the deal-breaking technological advancement when it comes to the future of electric power. It can hold a very high capacity for electrical energy while being very thin and lightweight. It is a perfect conductor of heat and electricity and is also very safe. In a way, it is a supercapacitor as it can charge and discharge energy at a breakneck speed. It can also be used in the devices of all shapes ranging from massive power reserves for solar energy to small-sized battery for smartwatches.

However, the only problem is to find a way to switch the batteries off and then to mass-produce these super-thin batteries so that it could be used at all the electronic fields and meet the requirement of battery power all over the world more efficiently.

This being said, everything comes with certain disadvantages, but in the situation of graphene batteries, it is clear that advantages hugely outnumber the disadvantages. This is a very potential battery technology that could make the use of electronic devices soon even more efficient and pleasurable. With some problems to be solved still, this technology seems to be very promising.