MIT's new battery electrolyte could make recycling a breeze
MIT researchers just came up with a clever new electrolyte for lithium-ion batteries that could seriously simplify recycling.
The material—made from aramid amphiphiles (AAs) and polyethylene glycol (PEG)—forms stable structures in water but dissolves in organic solvents, making it much easier to separate out components without fancy machines or toxic wastewater.
The electrolyte is designed to be tough and easy to recycle
Authored by Yukio Cho and a team from MIT, this electrolyte was designed to be tough (think Kevlar-level strong) but easy to recycle.
While it isn't quite ready for electric cars yet due to some performance hiccups, the team hopes future versions will help make battery recycling cleaner and less wasteful.
This fits into a bigger trend: other groups, like Rice University and Porsche, are also working on smarter ways to recycle old batteries and reduce reliance on lithium, which could help cut down on mining's environmental impact.