A lithium-ion or Li-ion battery is a type of rechargeable battery that uses the reversible intercalation of Li + ions into electronically conducting solids to store energy.
What are lithium-ion batteries?
Lithium-ion batteries – also called Li-ion batteries - are used by millions of people every day. This article looks at what lithium-ion batteries are, gives an evaluation of their characteristics, and discusses system criteria such as battery life and battery charging.
What is a lithium ion battery used for?
More specifically, Li-ion batteries enabled portable consumer electronics, laptop computers, cellular phones, and electric cars. Li-ion batteries also see significant use for grid-scale energy storage as well as military and aerospace applications. Lithium-ion cells can be manufactured to optimize energy or power density.
According to the U.S. Department of Energy, lithium-ion batteries can reach an energy density of about 150 to 200 watt-hours per kilogram, significantly higher than that of nickel-cadmium (NiCd) or lead-acid batteries. Long Lifespan: The longevity of lithium-ion batteries enhances their overall value.
What makes a lithium battery unique?
They are quite unique when compared to other batteries because of their high cost per unit and high energy density. A lithium battery operates on the principle of intercalation and deintercalation of lithium ions from a positive electrode material and a negative electrode material, with the most common type being the Lithium-ion battery.
The main components of cells of lithium-ion batteries are cathode, anode and electrolyte. Although lithium-ion batteries are employed as a crucial tool for today's miniaturized and rechargeable electronics devices, they exhibit some serious drawbacks including their high costs, low energy density and limited life cycle.
Is lithium ion a good battery chemistry?
Nevertheless, lithium-ion is one of the most successful and safe battery chemistries available today. Two billion cells are produced every year. The load characteristics of a lithium-ion cell are reasonably good. They maintain their nominal voltage of 3.6 V or more before falling off as the last of their charge is used.