Fluoride-ion battery runs at room temperature

Abstract

Batteries that outperform today’s lithium-ion variety, in terms of how much energy they can cram into a small lightweight package, could push electric vehicle usage into high gear. A new study detailing an electrochemistry advance may nudge one such high-energy-density type, the fluoride-ion battery (FIB), from the drawing board toward application. Rechargeable FIBs, which in theory can hold about eight times as much energy per volume as current lithium-ion batteries can, aren’t new, but they are uncommon. That’s because these devices generate electricity by shuttling fluoride ions from one electrode to the other through a fluoride-ion-conducting electrolyte. The electrolytes are solids, and to coax them to conduct substantial ion currents, they need to be heated above 150 °C, which severely limits applications. Now, a large team of researchers, including Simon C. Jones of the California Institute of Technology and Christopher J. Brooks of the Honda Research Institute, have come up