Many governments are projecting the expansion of electric vehicles in the coming years, but this does not seem realistic given the current state of the technology. Battery life, limited travelling distance and the inconvenience of re-charging are all problems that have yet to be solved. Long-lasting, quick-charging batteries are essential to the growth of the electric vehicle market. Today’s lithium-ion batteries fall short of what’s needed as they are too heavy, too expensive and take too long to charge – but help may be on the way.

For decades scientists have tried to harness the potential of solid-state lithium-metal batteries, which hold substantially more energy and charge in a fraction of the time. Professor Xin Li of Harvard University has recently designed a stable lithium-metal battery that has the potential to last for up to 15 years before needing replacement. This would significantly increase the lifetime of electric vehicles, and it could be fully charged in 10 to 20 minutes, which is much faster than is currently possible. Li says that, “Scaling it up to the level of a commercial battery will not be easy, but we believe the difficulties will be overcome.”