Researchers make incredible breakthrough with batteries that mimic human brains: 'This approach unlocks new capabilities'
By mimicking neural networks in human brains, National Renewable Energy Laboratory team members said they can predict battery health 1,000 times faster than standard methods, according to a news release.
Common lithium-ion batteries that power electric vehicles and other technology include complex parts that need to operate in changing conditions. By better understanding battery cell health ASAP, the experts plan to expand pack lifetimes. It's an obvious win for EV owners and anyone else using a battery-powered device.
"Battery lifetime and aging dynamics vary significantly with chemistry, operating conditions, cycling demands, electrode design, and operational history, which makes optimal handling, design, and maintenance difficult," researcher Kandler Smith said in the summary. He leads the lab's electrochemical modeling and data science research.
"It's especially difficult to understand the physical degradation mechanisms of a battery during use without opening it up. We need reliable methods to check in on batteries' internal state in a nondestructive way," Smith added.
The lab's approach replaces the common physics-based model with what's called a physics-informed neural network, or PINN. It also uses artificial intelligence. It's geared to quantify degradation and provide better solutions to manage battery aging during cycling, per the release.
It's a field the team has been working in for a while. The lab has already produced a couple of physics-based predictive models. But they require a slow quagmire of computations. PINN understands physics and can quickly apply its laws to a pattern-based prediction model. It's an ingenious marriage of the two diagnostic setups, according to the summary.
Other labs are researching sensors and scans that can detect flaws in packs to better prevent failures and even rare, yet serious, fires.
It's part of a whirlwind of battery breakthroughs happening around the world that are providing better components, chemistry, and production methods that are lowering costs and improving performance. Goldman Sachs forecast that pack prices will drop 50% by next year, partly thanks to improving technology.
The units are crucial to the cleaner energy shift by both powering EVs and storing renewable electricity. Battery backups combined with a solar panel system at home can greatly reduce or eliminate your utility bill. A setup can charge your EV while providing blackout protection. And if it's part of a virtual power plant, you can even sell some of the excess electricity back to the grid.
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Tax breaks for most of the tech are available to help offset the costs. EV incentives total $7,500 for new rides. Solar rebates are up to 30% of the installation expense. EnergySage is a vetted, online resource that can help you maximize the sun-catching benefits. It's all in addition to reducing heat-trapping air pollution that's linked by NASA to increased risks for severe storms and life-threatening heat waves.
Back in the lab, the government renewable energy experts are planning for more testing to expand the open-source model's function. The goal is for onboard analysis while the battery operates. It could be a key upgrade, giving next-gen tech a longer life.
"This approach unlocks new capabilities in battery diagnostics. … This means that batteries of the future may include systems to extend their useful life by identifying degradation signals and adapting fast-charge limits with age," Smith said in the release.
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