Scientists at the University of Maryland and the US Army Research Laboratory have used high concentrations of salt in water to create safe, green batteries that could find use in anything from large-scale grid storage to spaceships and pacemakers.
Many of today’s batteries are designed so that, on first charge, their energy-carrying electrolytes will break down near the negative pole and form a so-called “solid-electrolyte interphase” (SEI) layer that is electrically insulating, but still lets ions through.
The SEI allows the battery to operate at higher voltages and self-discharge more slowly. It is so important that commercial lithium-ion batteries include one, even though this means using a flammable electrolyte in a battery that can (in rare cases) quickly overheat. The safer alternative of a water-based electrolyte has been set aside for commercial applications because it was so far believed that no SEI could form in such a medium. Read more
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