Research Project
8714825
Project Summary NOHMs Technologies proposes to develop a novel Lithium-Sulfur (Li-S) battery system as a reliable emergency power source for assistive medical equipment. NOHMs Li-S battery can increase the energy delivery time in a power outage from 2 hours to 24 hours or more, while yielding a significant reduction in weight, size, and cost compared to existing emergency power supply systems. Li-S offers one of the highest theoretical energy densities (2.3 kWh/kg) among rechargeable batteries. The proposed technology is based on innovative sulfur-infused carbon composite cathode materials and safer electrolytes. These materials overcome the poor cycle life problems that have limited commercialization of lithium-sulfur batteries by encapsulating sulfur in nanometer-sized mesoporous carbon capsules (S@C) and with novel electrolytes that overcome lithium batteries safety issues associated with the metallic lithium anode. The Phase I project focuses on the development and design of a high energy Li-S battery sub-module prototype and demonstration of its feasibility for application in an emergency power supply system. Specifically, the module will be evaluated based on its energy density, power density, size, weight, start-up times and maintenance requirements. Phase II of the project if funded will be focuses on delivering a practical light-weight Li-S battery module which can provide ~4.8kWh of backup power for medical assistive devices.
