THE SUSTAINABILITY OF SOLID-STATE BATTERIES AND

SOLAR WINDOWS
BY TREVOR KLIX
WHAT IS A SOLID-STATE BATTERY?

• Battery in which all components that make up the battery are solid
• Lithium-Ion batteries used a liquid electrolyte that fills the space between the
anode and cathode.
• Solid-state batteries use a solid material as an electrolyte
 BASIC PARTS OF A RECHARGEABLE BATTERY
• Anode
• Send electrons through wire
• Enables electric current to flow through external circuit while allowing absorption/emission of lithium ions from
the cathode
• Negative

• Cathode
• Determines the capacity and voltage of a Li-Ion battery
• Source of Lithium ions
• Positive

• Separator
• Barrier between cathode and anode

• Electrolyte
• Allows movement of Lithium Ion to and from the cathode
HOW IT WORKS

• Same mechanism as lithium-ion batteries

• Use metal as material for the electrodes
• Electrical flow is generated by ions
moving the electrolyte between cathode
and anode
• No separator or liquid electrolyte needed
 WHY SOLID-STATE BATTERIES
• Safer than regular lithium-ion batteries
• Reduction or elimination of the risk of fire
• Performance improvements
• Increased driving range in Electric Vehicles
• Long life cycle and shelf life
• Higher energy density compared to normal lithium-ion batteries
• New Chemistry Designs
• Use material that is not feasible with liquid electrolytes
• Why are these important?
• Allows future Electric Vehicles to compete with the longer ranged gas powered vehicles
 WHO IS WORKING ON THIS?
• Multiple companies and government agencies
• Most notably
• Department of Energy
• QuatumScape
• Solid Power, Inc
• Toyota Motor Corporation
• Albemarle
• Hyundai
• Toyota
• And many more
WHAT RESEARCH IS BEING DONE?
• Research into mechanisms of ion transport in solid electrolyte
• Ionic transport mechanism in solid polymer
• Ionic transport mechanism in solid inorganic material
• Research into solid electrolyte
• Solid Polymer electrolyte
• Solid single-ion polymer gel electrolyte
• Solid polyethylene oxide electrolyte
• Solid oxide garnet electrolyte
• Solid sulfide electrolyte Research into the architecture and mass production
• Research into the architecture and mass production
• Improving interface contact and interface resistance
• Production technologies
 CHALLENGES AND PATHWAYS TOWARD SOLID-
STATE BATTERIES
• Close Material Science Gaps
• Learn more aspects of the Li metal Anode
• Solve the Li/Solid electrolyte interface
• Active cathode materials study and solid-state composite Cathodes Study
• Close Processing Science Gaps
• Close Design Engineering Gaps
 THE SOCIETAL IMPACT OF THE SOLID-STATE
BATTERIES
• Economic Impact
• Cheaper batteries
• Cheaper Cars and other batter power products
• Battery powered products last longer/are more powerful
• Environmental Impact
• Reducing the number of hydrocarbons produced from cars
• Electric Vehicles are cheaper
• Electric Vehicles can go as far as gas powered vehicles
• Safer than previous Electric Vehicles
• Cultural Impact
• Change in Attuite toward Electric Vehicles
• No more flight restriction on taking Li-Ion power things on a plane
• Safe for customers to use
WHAT ARE SOLAR WINDOWS?

• Solar Windows are transparent solar cells that act as windows and power
buildings
• Whole skyscrapers can become solar farms
HOW IT WORKS

• Entire Construction transfers light to solar cells

on the side of the window
• A transparent light diffusive plate that is sandwiched
between to glass planes
• Light is then transferred to the solar cells on the
edges of the windows
WHY SOLAR POWERED WINDOWS

• Solar Windows look like regular windows but act like solar panels, generating
electricity from the sun.
• Huge potential to help meet renewable energy need from renewable sources
• US estimated to have between five and seven billion square meters of glass surface
• All of that could be a solar farm
WHO IS WORKING ON IT?

• Multiple companies
• Ubiquitous Energy
• Solar Windows technologies, Inc
• Physee (a Netherlands based company)
• Plans to install in multiple office buildings for trials

• Massachusetts Institute of Technology

• Michigan State University
CHALLENGES

• Developing the technology to use near-IR energy

• Increase the Efficiency
• Increase Size
• However, companies have started to improve upon the design and will start to
produce them for large scale testing
SOCIAL IMPACT OF SOLAR POWERED WINDOWS
• Economic Impact
• Improved Energy Production
• Electric bill have massive decrease
• Customers have more money to spend on other things
• Companies will make less of a profit which could cause the Economy to fluctuate
• Cultural Impact
• Change in electric Companies
• Rethink about solar power

• Environmental Impact
• Massive reduction in reliance on normal coal or oil power plants
• Massive reduction in green house gas production from large cities
REFERENCES

• See notes section