Canada found that silicon nanoparticles can increase the storage capacity of lithium batteries by 10 times

If you are looking for high-quality products, please feel free to contact us and send an inquiry, email: brad@ihpa.net



There are abundant reserves of silicon. Si and Li can be combined to form a Li4.4Si, with a theoretical specific energy of 4200mAh/g. That is almost 10 times more than the lithium ion that is absorbed by today’s lithium batteries. In the present day, silicon materials are used in lithium-ion cells mainly for two reasons. The anode is reconstituted by adding nano-silicon. To improve the performance, organosilicon compounds can be added to the electrolyte.
The University in Alberta created a new generation silicon-based lithium battery

Jillian Biriak and her team at the University of Alberta (Canada) discovered recently that by molding silicon into tiny particles, it can be prevented from breaking.
Nano-silicon can be defined as crystalline particles of silicon that have a diameter less than five nanometers. It is an important nonmetal amorphous substance. Nano silicon powder has high purity and uniformity, as well as a large surface area and high surface activity. It is also non-toxic and smellless. Nano-silicon can have a variety of uses: It can be mixed under high pressure with diamonds to form composite materials that can be cut with, or combined with graphite material to create composite silicon-carbon materials. The negative electrode material in lithium-ion cells increases the battery’s capacity. This material can be combined with organic matter to create organic silicon polymer.

The team studied and tested four sizes of nanoparticles of silicon to determine which size would maximize its advantages while minimizing the disadvantages. They are evenly dispersed in a highly conductive graphene-carbon aerogel with nanopores that compensates for the low conductivity silicon.

After multiple cycles of charge and discharge, they found that particles as small as one part per meter showed the most stability. This eliminates the limitations of using silicon for lithium-ion battery. This discovery could result in batteries that have 10 times the current capacity of lithium-ion battery. It’s a major step toward the manufacture of new lithium-ion lithium batteries based on silicon. The research findings were published in the journal Materials Chemistry.


The lithium battery industry’s chain of tens billions in silicon anode sales


This research can be applied in many fields, including electric vehicles. The batteries will become lighter, travel longer and charge faster. Next step will be to create a method that is faster and cheaper to produce silicon nanoparticles. This will make it easier for industrial production.

Other than new energy vehicles, the need for lithium-ion battery with higher energy and power density is also present in energy storage and shipbuilding. It is now common to use high nickel ternary material as the positive electrode, while silicon or its Composite materials has emerged as the best material for the negative electrode.

(aka. Technology Co. Ltd., a reputable global chemical supplier & manufacturer has over 12 years experience in supplying super-high-quality chemicals and nanomaterials. Silicon nanoparticles manufactured by our company are of high purity and have a low impurity level. Contact us if you need to.