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Rechargeable batteries are great for storing energy and powering electronics from smartphones to electric vehicles. In cold environments, however, they can be more difficult to charge and may even catch on fire. I’m a mechanical engineering professor who’s been interested in batteries since college. I now lead a battery research group at Drexel University. In just this past decade, I have watched the price of lithium-ion batteries drop as the production market has grown much larger. Future projections predict the market could reach thousands of GWh per year by 2030, a significant increase. But, lithium-ion batteries aren’t perfect...... Read Full article on HadNews

Can Nanoparticles Help Fight Hunger? | Christy L. Haynes | TED can Nanoparticles truly help fight hunger? In a thought-provoking TED talk by chemistry professor Christy L. Haynes, she explores the potential of nanoparticles in addressing the global food crisis. Drawing from her personal experience of growing up in a food-insecure household, she is driven to find innovative solutions for hunger. Nanoparticles, which are extremely small materials, have unique chemical and physical properties that can be harnessed for various applications. Professor Haynes and her research group are developing silica nanoparticles that can be incorporated into...... Read Full article on HadNews

In a newly published study, we describe our design for a self-extinguishing rechargeable battery. It replaces the most commonly used electrolyte, which is highly combustible – a medium composed of a lithium salt and an organic solvent – with materials found in a commercial fire extinguisher. An electrolyte allows lithium ions that carry an electric charge to move across a separator between the positive and negative terminals of a lithium-ion battery. By modifying affordable commercial coolants to function as battery electrolytes, we were able to produce a battery that puts out its own fire. Our electrolyte worked well across a wide ...... Read Full article on HadNews