Making EV Batteries More Sustainable

Led by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, a consortium of the nation’s top battery scientists will accelerate the commercialization of a new family of battery cathode materials called DRX or “disordered rock salt.” Watch this video to learn how DRX cathodes could provide batteries with higher energy density than conventional Li-ion battery cathodes made of nickel and cobalt, two metals that are in critically short supply.

“DRX offers more sustainable, more abundant, and cheaper mineral sources for battery cathodes,” said principal investigator Gerbrand Ceder . “The lithium-ion battery is a really good energy storage technology, but to stay relevant, it will need to grow toward higher production of multiple terawatt hours per year. Without DRX, lithium-ion batteries would require enormous amounts of nickel and cobalt if we stay with current technologies.”