Potassium-ion battery

A potassium-ion battery is a type of battery and analogue to lithium-ion batteries, using potassium ions for charge transfer instead of lithium ions, which was first introduced by the Iranian/American chemist, Ali Eftekhari (President of the American Nano Society), based on a potassium compound Prussian blue as the cathode material.^[1] The reason for this selection was high electrochemical stability of Prussian blue,^[2] and thus the prototype of the battery was successfully used for millions of cycles.

The potassium battery has certain advantages in comparison with similar lithium batteries (e.g., lithium-ion batteries): the cell design is simple, and both the material used and the procedure needed for the cell fabrication are cheaper. The prototype was made of KBF
4 electrolyte though almost all common electrolyte salts of lithium batteries (their potassium salts) can be used for the construction of potassium battery. The chemical diffusion coefficient of K+
in the cell is higher than that of Li+
in lithium batteries, which is due to a smaller Stokes radius of K+
in electrolyte solution (solvated ions). Since the electrochemical potential of K+
is identical to that of Li+
, the cell potential is similar to that of lithium-ion. Potassium batteries can accept a wide range of cathode materials with excellent rechargeability, cheaper materials, etc. A noticeable advantage of potassium battery is the availability of potassium graphite, which is used as an anode material in current lithium-ion battery. Its stable structure guarantees a reversible intercalation/de-intercalation of potassium ions during the charging/discharging process.

In 2005, a potassium battery that uses molten electrolyte of KPF
6 was patented.^[3][4] In 2007, a Chinese company Starsway Electronics marketed the first potassium battery-powered portable media player as a high-energy device.^[5]

It is believed that potassium battery can replace lithium battery for large-scale energy storage because of its exceptional cycleability, as reported by the researchers of Northwestern University in Nature Communications.,^[6][7]

Low cost of potassium in comparison with lithium has highlighted the idea of potassium battery in other forms too. Researchers at Ohio State University (OSU) have demonstrated the concept of a potassium-air (K−O2) battery with low overpotentials.^[8]

See also

• Lithium-ion battery
• Lithium–air battery
• Thin-film battery
• Rechargeable electricity storage system

References

External links

• New Battery Technology Could Provide Large-Scale Energy Storage for the Grid

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