'Breathing' lithium-air battery has higher energy density than Li-ion

The team, from Mie University in Japan, presented their work at the 247th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS).

‘Lithium-air batteries are lightweight and deliver a large amount of electric energy,’ said Nobuyuki Imanishi, a Ph.D student at Mie University. ‘Many people expect them to one day be used in electric vehicles.’

The main difference between lithium-ion and lithium-air batteries is that the latter replaces the traditional cathode with air, making the rechargeable metal-air battery lighter and potentially more powerful than its commercial counterpart.

One of the main components researchers are working on is the lithium-air batteries’ electrolytes, of which there are currently four electrolyte designs, with one involving water. The advantage of this ‘aqueous’ design over the others is that it protects the lithium from interacting with gases in the atmosphere and enables fast reactions at the air electrode. The downside, however, is that water in direct contact with lithium can damage it.