Aluminium-air battery could give Electric Vehicles longer range

A new technology was introduced at the annual Battery Show held in Michigan at the Suburban Collection Showplace convention centre on Friday - an aluminium-air battery that is likely to eliminate range anxiety experienced with other electric vehicles, as per inventors’ claim.

The technology is developed by Phinergy- an Israeli along with Alcoa, the aluminium giant.

The aluminium-air battery will not be the only energy source in the vehicle; a lithium-ion battery will work in conjunction with it.

The lithium-ion battery will be used for daily driving powering the car until it is depleted while the car’s computer will automatically switch to aluminium-air when going on longer drives.

The downfall with lithium batteries is that they need to be charged via an electric source and the longevity of the battery depends on how much energy they can store, which is the major limitation with EVs.

With aluminium-air batteries, it will not rely on stored energy rather it will generate electricity by sucking in air into the battery cells causing a reaction much like internal-combustion engines that suck in air to burn the fuel.

The cathode used is a patented technology of an unrevealed material that reacts with oxygen while the anode is the aluminium plate.

The battery will function as long as the plates will last which gets depleted in the oxidation process that creates the required energy, lasting approximately up to 1,600km. The plates can be replaced once used which the makers estimate will cost as much as 1,600km worth of gasoline at the current rate.