Could we finally have a phone that lasts all day? Sony reveals ‘superbattery’ with 40% more capacity will go on sale in 2020

Could we finally have a phone that lasts all day? Sony reveals ‘superbattery’ with 40% more capacity will go on sale in 2020

Sony is working on lithium-sulfur battery and a magnesium-sulfur battery

Could provide an energy density per unit volume of 1,000 Wh/L  

Chinese company Huawei's battery charges to 50% in five minutes  

Smartphone technology and design changes every year, but what doesn’t change is the battery life.

Keeping a phone charged all day can be a task, but Sony has announced plans for a new battery that could carry 40 percent more energy than the traditional lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries.

The firm says it hopes the first 'superbatteries' will go on sale in 2020 - and will make the batteries available to all manufacturers. 

 Keeping a phone charged all day can be a tough task, but Sony has announced plans for a new battery that could carry 40 percent more energy than the traditional lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries

HOW DOES LITHIUM-SULFUR BATTERIES WORK? 

A typical lithium-sulfur battery consists of two electrodes – a lithium metal anode and a sulfur-carbon cathode – surrounded by a conductive fluid, or electrolyte.

Several studies have attributed the battery's short cycle life to chemical reactions that deplete the cathode of sulfur.

In lithium-sulfur batteries, an electric current is generated when lithium ions in the anode react with sulfur particles at the cathode during discharge.

The byproducts of this chemical reaction are compounds known as lithium polysulfides.

Sony tells Nikkei that it’s working on a battery that uses sulfur at the negative electrode (and plain old lithium at the positive one) to provide an energy density per unit volume of 1,000 Wh/L.

For comparison, most conventional lithium-ion batteries have an energy density of around 700Wh/L.

Sony, which was a key player in the development of Li-ion batters in the 1990s, intends produce a lithium-sulfur (Li-S) battery and a magnesium-sulfur (Mg-S) battery.

When the batteries hit the market in 2020, they will first be used for smartphones, regardless of the manufacturer, then other applications will follow. 

The Li-S battery uses a sulfur compound for the positive electrode and metal lithium, etc for the negative electrode.

Although Li-S cells have more capacities, the sulfur breaks down faster and manufactures have ruled this option out in the past.

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