Scientists from the Helmholtz Institute Mainz (HIM) and New York University have developed a non-destructive method to diagnose a battery’s health through its metal casing.
A battery’s internal life is a stubborn mystery: it functions perfectly until, without warning, it simply doesn’t.Now, an international research team has finally found a way to diagnose the internal workings using a specialized form of nuclear magnetic resonance .
Scientists from the Helmholtz Institute Mainz and New York University have developed a non-destructive method to diagnose a battery’s health through its metal casing. It could end the era of unexpected battery failures in smartphones, electric vehicles, and other electronic devices. “We examine the batteries using what is known as zero-to-ultra-low-field magnetic resonance. The casings are transparent for this technique, allowing us to see inside,” said Dr. Anne Fabricant, the study’s co-first author.Electrolyte decayEvery rechargeable battery depends on the electrolyte. This chemical medium acts as the highway for charged particles moving between electrodes.When a battery ages, this highway breaks down. The electrolyte can leak, dry up, or chemically degrade over thousands of charge cycles. Eventually, repeated use kills the battery or, in extreme cases, creates a fire hazard.Until now, there was no way to check this chemical pulse without cutting the battery open — a process that, unsurprisingly, destroys the battery. “Reliable methods for nondestructive testing of the battery condition are currently lacking, as the quantity and chemical composition of the electrolyte cannot be determined through the housing using conventional techniques. This is exactly where our research comes in,” Fabricant added.For this diagnostic technique, Zero-to-Ultra-Low-Field Nuclear Magnetic Resonance was used. Nuclear magnetic resonance is captured independently of a heavy, external magnetic field. This helped to see through metal battery casings. Professor Dmitry Budker and his team successfully used this technique to detect and quantify the chemical components — solvents and lithium salts — inside commercial battery cells.“These were realistically packaged battery cells, including so-called pouch-cell geometries used in electric vehicles. We have thus proven the concept and paved the way for a practical application of the technology,” said Budker, who works at HIM and Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz.Keeping EVs safeWith the rapid shifts toward renewable energy storage and EVs, real-time battery health monitoring is key for safety.Future applications of ZULF NMR include operando measurements, which enable real-time safety and integrity testing while a battery is in use. This operando measurement means the EV could potentially prompt exactly why its range is dropping, or alert on chemical instability before it leads to a fire.It could be beneficial for everything from smartphones and notebooks to electric vehicles and large-scale renewable energy grids.Beyond monitoring current health, these insights could help elucidate complex electrochemical processes, leading to more efficient next-generation battery technologies.“The ability to nondestructively characterize electrolyte volume and composition supports superior battery design and serves as a vital quality control tool throughout a cell’s lifecycle,” said Professor Alexej Jerschow, key project collaborator from New York University.The researchers are already looking for ways to scale. The goal is to make the sensors faster, cheaper, and capable of scanning the massive battery packs used in grid-scale energy storage.The findings were published in the journal Chemical Science.
Electric Vehicles Electrolyte Energy &Amp Environment Nuclear Magnetic Resonance
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