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Experts believe that solid-state batteries will eventually replace traditional lithium-ion batteries as the industry standard.

Researchers have created a new ‘breakthrough’ battery that retains its charge capacity after hundreds of uses. An international team of researchers from the University of New South Wales in Australia and Yokohama National University in Japan claim to have developed a next-generation electric vehicle battery. They are said to last much longer than the batteries currently used in most EVs. The scientists believe the new technology could offer a viable and far superior alternative to current battery technology and, as experts put it, it could even reduce costs “dramatically”.

In the study, researchers examined a new material intended for use as a battery cathode and found it to have “unprecedented stability” for long-life solid-state batteries.

Typically, most electric vehicles are powered by lithium-ion batteries, which experts say struggle to deliver the power and durability needed while competing with traditional internal combustion engine vehicles that run on gasoline or diesel.

Experts hailed solid-state batteries as “groundbreaking” because of their potential to overcome the technical limitations of lithium-ion battery packs currently used in a variety of applications, including smartphones.

However, these solid-state batteries, which use solid electrodes rather than liquids or gels, have so far faced their own limitations in terms of durability.

The main problem is that repeated charging of these batteries can irreversibly damage the interface between the electrodes and the electrolyte, making them unsuitable for commercial use.

In their new study, the researchers were able to maintain the charge capacity of a 300 mAh battery over hundreds of charge cycles without degradation.

The scientists performed these charge-discharge cycles in laboratory tests by combining their new cathode with a suitable solid electrolyte and anode.

Associate Professor Neeraj Sharma from UNSW said: “The absence of capacity fading over 400 cycles clearly indicates the superior performance of this material compared with those reported for conventional all-solid-state cells with layered materials.

“This finding could drastically reduce battery costs. The development of practical high-performance solid-state batteries can also lead to the development of advanced electric vehicles.”

A top BMW engineer has called solid-state batteries the “next big thing” in battery development, The Independent reports.

Simon Erhard recently declared that lithium-ion batteries have “reached the pinnacle” in performance, and predicted that solid-state batteries will replace lithium-ion batteries as the battery industry standard in the future.

This study was published in the scientific journal Nature Materials, titled “A near dimensionally invariable high-capacity positive electrode material.”

Solid-state batteries could reduce the carbon footprint of electric vehicle batteries by as much as 39 percent compared with liquid lithium-ion batteries, according to Brussels-based campaign group Transport and Environment (T&E).

The group recently hailed these new battery technologies as “one of the most promising chemistries being developed, to current lithium-ion technology.”

They said: “Solid state technology uses solid ceramic material instead of liquid electrolytes to carry electric current, also making the batteries lighter, faster to charge, and eventually cheaper.”

Cecilia Mattea, clean vehicles officer at T&E, said: “Electric vehicles are already far better for the planet than burning oil, and the carbon footprint of batteries is falling every year.

“But solid-state technology is a step change because their higher energy density means far less materials, and therefore far less emissions, are needed to make them.”

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