Rechargeable Alkaline Batteries Sound Great, But Now Comes the Hard Part
Alkaline batteries are cheaper and safer than lithium-ion counterparts, but they can’t be recharged. A startup called Ionic Materials says it's changing that. The New York Times reports that the company is to announce a “design breakthrough” tomorrow that “could make solid-state alkaline batteries a viable alternative to lithium-ion.” Full details are due to be presente at a Rocky Mountain Institute conference, but the newspaper claims that Ionic has “developed prototypes of a rechargeable alkaline battery that can be made using continuous manufacturing processes similar to the making of plastic wrap.” Prototypes are claimed to handle 400 charge cycles, with the firm hoping that number will triple. It sounds swell, but like we’ve said in the past, great battery chemistry is one thing—turning it into a full-scale commercial product is quite another. Ionic still needs to do that part.
Keep Reading
Most Popular
Large language models can do jaw-dropping things. But nobody knows exactly why.
And that's a problem. Figuring it out is one of the biggest scientific puzzles of our time and a crucial step towards controlling more powerful future models.
How scientists traced a mysterious covid case back to six toilets
When wastewater surveillance turns into a hunt for a single infected individual, the ethics get tricky.
The problem with plug-in hybrids? Their drivers.
Plug-in hybrids are often sold as a transition to EVs, but new data from Europe shows we’re still underestimating the emissions they produce.
Stay connected
Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review
Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.