New proton battery could replace existing lithium-ion technology in the battery business

The year 2018 has seen the boom of the lithium-ion battery industry, with companies like Tesla, Rimac, and already established car companies like Ferrari, Porsche, and McLaren working on releasing their respective “all electric” cars, all of which use lithium-ion batteries. 

In the epic effort to rely on clean energy, a great amount of stress is being applied on the existing “lithium-ion” battery configuration, as it currently holds the crown for being the most economical and reliable way to achieve green energy, as compared to burning fossil fuels.

Now a team of researchers at RMIT University, Melbourne have managed to create the world’s first rechargeable proton battery. This battery uses the much abundant element carbon rather than relying on hydrogen and lithium. It is estimated that this method of achieving energy would be more economical and reliable.  

The carbon it produces is not burnt or exhaled into the atmosphere as fumes, which makes it more “greener” than lithium batteries. The current prototype, with an active surface area of 5.5 square centimeters, is already capable of storing as much energy-per-mass as lithium batteries. 

“Future work will now focus on further improving performance and energy density through the use of atomically-thin layered carbon-based materials such as graphene, with the target of a proton battery that is truly competitive with lithium-ion batteries firmly in sight,” Andrews said