Samsung researchers believe graphene balls can make significant improvements to lithium ion batteries. The nano coating delivers a number of benefits. First, batteries that make use of graphene balls are able to charge much faster. For example, a battery that normally takes 60 minutes to recharge would be able to recharge in just 12 minutes. It does this by suppressing detrimental side effects and providing charging pathways that are more efficient. Second, coating lithium ion in graphene creates batteries that are more dense, leading to higher-capacity batteries. Samsung says it can increase density by as much as 27.6%. Last, the graphene does not create any detriments to the number of charging cycles. For example, a battery with graphene balls will retain 78.6% of its capacity after 500 charging cycles. For now, Samsung is hoping to use this technology in batteries for electric vehicles. It may eventually be scaled down to batteries for mobile devices, but Samsung did not say if or when this technology might reach any consumer products.


More...