what holds energy tech back? the infernal battery

WASHINGTON (AP)—
With 21 century technology getting faster, cleaner and cheaper, an invention more than 200 years ago has been holding it back.
That\'s why electric cars are not blocking roads, and it\'s also Boeing\'s new ultra-
The efficient 787 Dreamliner will not fly very high.
There\'s a good chance that you have this little invention right next to you right now and may have cursed it recently: Hell battery.
Boeing is the first company to be widely used on state-of-the-art battery passenger planes. lithium ion. But a Jan.
Seven battery fires occurred on a Dreamliner in Boston, followed by a similar meltdown in Japan, which made authorities around the world stop the fleet this month, highlighting
At 2006 and 2007, more than 46 million cell phone batteries and 10 million laptop batteries-
All lithium ion-
Recalled because of the risk of overheating, short selling
Short circuit and explosion.
Since then, additional safety features have been installed on lithium-ion batteries used in consumer electronics.
As for the electric vehicle industry, lithium-ion batteries have proven to have two major drawbacks: they are costly and do not allow cars to go far enough between charging.
Electric vehicle lithium-ion battery maker A123 went bankrupt last year due to poor demand and high cost after receiving a $0. 249 billion federal grant.
Lithium-ion batteries store more energy at higher voltages and are lighter than earlier batteries, representing the latest leap in battery technology.
This happened about 25 years ago.
\"We need to go beyond battery manufacturing engineering,\" said Vince Bataglia, a battery scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory . \".
\"We must find the next big thing.
\"But none of the 10 experts who spoke to The Associated Press said they knew what the big thing would be or when it would happen.
\"If you crack it. . .
\"This will change the world,\" said Jay Whittaker, professor of materials science at Carnegie Mellon University . \".
Batteries are critical to the future of green energy, and the Obama administration has spent more than $2 billion
Start the advanced battery industry, including building what some experts call the micro battery industry
Battery Project Manhattan.
In order to make the next breakthrough, researchers must master complex chemistry, expensive manufacturing, detailed engineering, a variety of different materials, lengthy testing, strict safety standards and huge cost issues.
Glenn Amatucci, director of the energy storage research group at Rutgers University, said it involves dealing with liquids and solids, metals and organic chemicals, and things in.
\"We\'re working on a system that you can imagine, which is almost alive.
Breathe fast, \"said Amatucci.
\"It\'s very complicated to try to understand what\'s going on inside these batteries.
\"One reason for the battery is high-
The function of the technical highway is conflicting.
Its main job is to store energy.
But it should also discharge very quickly, a lot.
The two jobs are inconsistent.
\"If you want high storage, you can\'t get high power,\" said M . \"
Stanley Whittingham, director of the Northeast chemical energy storage center.
\"People expect more than they can.
\"In the commercial market, lithium-ion batteries are usually small enough to be installed on mobile phones.
But to power larger products
From Prius to 787
They get together and increase the juice they store and provide.
Experts say this also increases security risks.
The lithium-ion battery that fired at the Boeing 787 weighs 63 pounds and is 19 inch long.
\"The most fundamental problem is that lithium-ion batteries are filled with flammable liquids,\" Whitacre said . \". Even one-in-a-
Millions of problems with lithium-ion batteries can lead to many fires, as there are billions of batteries in use now, and dozens of batteries sometimes pile up in one device.
Experts say lithium-ion batteries are more dangerous because their electrolyte is more flammable than the substance in the old-fashioned battery, a liquid that allows ions to move between electrodes in the battery.
These old types include leads.
Acid batteries and nickel-cadmium batteries often used in video equipment and power tools in most cars.
Still, Gerbrand Ceder, professor of materials science and engineering at MIT, and others said that safety issues can be solved.
Changes are not common in the battery field.
\"Great advances in battery technology have rarely happened.
It\'s been over 200 years and we may have five different types of successful rechargeable batteries, \"says George Bloomgren, a former senior technical researcher at Eveready and now a private battery consultant.
\"Frustrating.
Alexander Walta
Who is the voltage named?
The first useful battery was invented in 1800.
This was achieved long before other breakthrough inventions such as internal combustion engines, telephones, automobiles, aircraft, transistors, computers and the Internet.
But all these developments seem to be going faster than simple batteries. The lead-
Acid car batteries \"have more or less existed in 150,\" Whitacre said \".
\"This is an extraordinary proof of how strong the chemical reaction is and how difficult it is to change.
\"Battery experts don\'t agree on the next thing.
Some believe that lithium-ion batteries can be repaired for major efficiency and storage improvements.
Amatucci says he thinks we can get two to three times as much energy from future lithium-ion batteries, while others say tiny chemical changes can do more.
But as many engineers say, lithium-ion batteries are on track.
\"With the materials currently in lithium-ion batteries, we are sure to have stabilized,\" Blomgren said . \".
\"We are waiting for something that really works.
\"Various new batteries are being developed: Lithium-air, lithium-
Sulfur, magnesium, sodium-ion.
\"It\'s a horse race now,\" Blomgren said . \".
\"Every technology is flawed.
Each of them needs a major solution.
Battaglia said: \"One of the biggest breakthroughs in the country is John Goodno, who is responsible for the 1979 breakthrough and led the first commercial lithium-ion battery in 1991.
He will receive the National Science Medal at the White House next month.
Goodno is 90 years old.
\"I\'m working on it,\" said Goodno, an engineering professor at the University of Texas in Austin, on Tuesday.
\"I\'m optimistic in a sense, and I\'m willing to keep working.
I think we can do something interesting.