Is battery technology a 'breakthrough'?

Many companies are continuing to do the hard work of improving existing battery technologies, though they tend not to claim their technology is a “breakthrough,” since their work leads to small improvements in performance.

Can batteries unlock other energy technologies?

Batteries can unlock other energy technologies, and they’re starting to make their mark on the grid. This article is from The Spark, MIT Technology Review ’s weekly climate newsletter. To receive it in your inbox every Wednesday, sign up here. Batteries are on my mind this week. (Aren’t they always?)

Why are commercial batteries so difficult to develop?

While countless breakthroughs have been announced over the last decade, time and again these advances failed to translate into commercial batteries. One difficult thing about developing better batteries is that the technology is still poorly understood.

Are batteries the future of energy?

The planet’s oceans contain enormous amounts of energy. Harnessing it is an early-stage industry, but some proponents argue there’s a role for wave and tidal power technologies. (Undark) Batteries can unlock other energy technologies, and they’re starting to make their mark on the grid.

Are batteries getting better over the years?

The third important point: Batteries have been getting better over the decades. The reason we don't notice is that our devices have been getting faster, more powerful and more power-hungry at the same time. Heck, if you could put a modern iPhone battery into a 1995 phone, it'd probably go a year on a single charge.

How difficult is it to develop better batteries?

One difficult thing about developing better batteries is that the technology is still poorly understood. Changing one part of a battery—say, by introducing a new electrode—can produce unforeseen problems, some of which can’t be detected without years of testing.