Information About Sand-Based Batteries
Researchers at the University of California, Riverside have designed a coin cell battery that uses silicon in its anode (negative side) instead of overused graphite and lasts up to three times longer than conventional lithium-ion batteries. The key to the research is the silicon extraction method, which uses quartz-rich sand and non-energy-intensive chemical reactions as raw materials. Previously, nanoscale silicon used in batteries was said to be difficult to manufacture.

While surfing, Zachary Favors, a graduate student at UC Riverside, was inspired by the beach sand he was resting on. Sand is mainly composed of quartz or silicon dioxide, but concentrations vary depending on the deposit. Favors found that the sands in Cedar Creek Reservoir east of Dallas contained a high percentage of quartz, drew the samples, and enlisted the help of engineering professors Cengiz Özcan and Mihri Özkan. By processing this, he produced pure silicone with a perforated structure and sponge consistency. This perforated structure increases the energy density and increases the performance of the battery.

The team grinded the sand to nanometer scale, then passed the tiny granules through a series of purification steps, and finally made them look like powdered sugar. The purified quartz was then mixed with ground salt and magnesium and heated. The salt acted as a heat sink, while the magnesium removed oxygen from the quartz, leaving pure silicon in its place. Furthermore, the resulting pure silicon was in a porous state ideal for use at the anode. The increased surface area allowed lithium ions to pass through faster and close the circuit.

To test the resulting dust on a real anode, the researchers built a coin cell battery. Performance tests reveal that a silicon-anode lithium-ion battery lasts up to three times longer than those using graphite. This means that l-i batteries using silicon anodes can help your phone or car battery last up to three times longer. This is a major development that could significantly change the way smartphones or electric cars are used. Next, Favors and colleagues will manufacture a larger battery (the size of a phone battery) and run more extensive tests to evaluate its lifecycle and other parameters. The researchers' discoveries were published in the journal Nature Scientific Reports.