South Korean researchers advance battery density and stability

South Korean research teams have announced significant advancements in battery technology aimed at increasing energy density and stability for electric vehicles.

A team from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) has successfully applied semiconductor microfabrication techniques to battery design. By creating sub-micron tubular arrays on copper foil current collectors, they have increased the surface area available for lithium deposition by approximately four times compared to flat foil. This structure, combined with a 10-nanometer MXene coating that acts as a primer to promote a protective lithium fluoride layer, helps prevent the formation of destructive lithium dendrites without requiring changes to existing electrolyte formulas.

Separately, researchers at the Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology (KRICT), in collaboration with Seoul National University and Yonsei University, have developed a dry thick-film cathode technology. By using graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) as an additive, the team improved electrolyte wettability and reduced the energy required for lithium-ion migration. This addresses the ‘lithium-ion traffic jam’ typically found in thicker electrodes, where ion transport slows down in deeper regions, allowing for higher-capacity batteries with more active material.