NTUST Professor Wins Y.Z. Hsu Science Award for Lithium Battery Safety Innovation
National Taiwan University of Science and Technology (NTUST) Professor Wang Fu-min has been awarded the 2024 Y.Z. Hsu Science Award in Green Technology for his groundbreaking innovations that enhance the safety of lithium batteries. Wang's research focuses on addressing one of the key challenges in battery technology: improving safety without sacrificing performance.
Professor Wang developed a new oligomer additive for lithium battery cathode material that significantly reduces the risk of battery fires and explosions while maintaining overall battery performance and extending the lifecycle. According to an NTUST press release, this innovative approach improves battery safety by stabilizing the chemical reactions that occur under high temperatures and high voltage.
“Lithium batteries play an increasingly important role in modern life, not only in electronic products but also in vehicles and energy storage systems,” said Wang. Despite their widespread use, lithium batteries have been prone to overheating, catching fire, and even exploding. Wang noted that the challenge lies in achieving a balance between performance and safety. “If you want a battery to be safe, the performance will decrease. And better efficiency or ease of use will increase the safety risk,” Wang explained.
The new additive developed by Wang forms a passive film structure on the surface of the battery's active material, thereby stabilizing the chemical reactions during operation. Although this technology increases raw material costs by about 3-5% per kilogram, it doubles the safety test pass rate, providing a reasonable compromise between cost and safety.
Wang, who has been researching batteries and organic materials for over 20 years, emphasized that lithium batteries are still not 100% safe. However, his work aims to buy crucial time in the event of battery failure, providing a safer environment. Ideally, Wang said, batteries should lose functionality rather than catch fire or explode upon failure.
Looking ahead, Wang's future research will focus on reducing the environmental impact of lithium batteries. He acknowledged that the production of lithium batteries requires heavy metals such as nickel and manganese, which are challenging to make environmentally friendly. However, he believes there is potential in using green materials in battery packaging. Wang also pointed out the possibility of developing carbon dioxide batteries or environmentally friendly organic polymer batteries in the future. He emphasized that advancements in battery manufacturing and recycling could help mitigate the environmental impact of lithium batteries.
