Solar power with battery storage is, without a doubt, the next ‘big thing.’ However, batteries are still quite expensive but the technology is already developing and becoming cheaper in the same way solar panels did.

Nanyang Technology University (NTU) has come out with a battery that can recharge 70% in just two minutes and has a 20 year lifespan.

Being able to charge a battery fast is a huge game changer. Not only is it convenient to use but it is also cutting down on the toxic waste of battery disposal (and the money used to replace the battery every time it runs out of charge).

A normal lithium-ion battery uses an anode made of graphite for the negative pole. In the NTU batteries, this is replaced with a new gel material made from titanium dioxide. Titanium dioxide is an abundant, cheap and safe material found in soil. It is commonly used as a food additive or in sunscreen lotions to absorb harmful ultraviolet rays.

According to the NTU press release, titanium dioxide is naturally found in spherical shape – the NTU team has found a way to transform it into tiny nanotubes, which are thousand times thinner than the diameter of a human hair. This speeds up the chemical reactions taking place in the new battery, allowing for superfast charging.

In addition, normal lithium-ion batteries usually last around 500 recharge cycles – the equivalent of around 2 to 3 years use and takes around 2 hours to recharge. These new batteries last around 10 000 recharge cycles – equivalent of 20 years use and can recharge up to 70% in just two minutes.

This is a massive achievement and could significantly impact the electric vehicle industry. The electric vehicle is limited because of large recharge times and costly battery replacement. With this new technology, prices would come down (as the cost to manufacture is lower as well) and recharging could be done in the same amount of time it would take to fill a similar car with fuel AND it has a longer battery lifespan.

Invented by Associate Professor Chen Xiaodong from NTU’s School of Materials Science and Engineering, manufacturing of the new battery will be easily integrated into the current production processes. The new gel for the batteries is made by mixing titanium dioxide with sodium hydroxide and stirring a certain temperatures.

Additives normally used to bind electrodes to the anode slow down the recharging process. With the NTU’s new battery, these additives are no longer needed, meaning they can reduce costs and pack more energy into the same amount of space.

The technology took a team of 4 scientists three years to complete. So far, they have only made small versions of the new battery but Professor Chen and his team are applying for a grant to manufacture a large-scale version which they reckon could be commercially produced in less than two years.

The co-inventor of the lithium-graphite anode, NTU professor Rachid Yazami, said Professor Chen’s invention is the “next big leap in battery technology”