Stanford University Researchers Find a Breakthrough in Lithium Battery Technology

This week, Stanford University researchers including former Energy Secretary Steven Chu, say they have developed a new lithium-ion battery design that would generate more power, last longer and weigh less.  As MineWeb reports, lithium-ion batteries are the most commonly used rechargeable battery today, and this breakthrough could create a higher energy storage density that “could boost the range of an electric car to 300 miles.”

“You might be able to have a cell phone with double or triple the battery life or an electric car with a range of 300 miles that cost only $25,000 — competitive with an internal combustion engine getting 40 miles per gallon,” Chu said. As outlined by the researchers, this “holy grail” of a finding could revolutionize the ways in which we create energy, use cell phones and power automobiles. This breakthrough is yet another example of how minerals and metals are essential, irreplaceable components of modern technology and new forms of energy.

As technological innovations, like this one spearheaded by Chu and the Stanford team, become more profound and impactful, the demand for minerals and metals will quickly and significantly increase. For the sake of these important technologies and continuing U.S. technological advancement, stable access to domestic minerals is imperative. Minerals are not only important to the American way of life, but are also integral to the technologies that make American companies world leaders in innovation.