sylviechen

Lithium Unicorns and Alternative Energy Storage

I believe that current battery technologies will soon be supplanted by multi-stage thermoelectric devices once they cross into the kwH output range.

Thermo electricity occurs when a temperature difference creates an electric potential or an electric potential creates a temperature. A commonly used material is Bismuth telluride (Bi2Te3).

With respect to output power to device weight ratios, a 1Kw/2Kg ratio is ideal for vehicles based on ambient temperature difference within a practical range. 12Kw multi-stage thermoelectric generator would weigh 24Kg and occupy space of 4 lead acid batteries, well within design efficiency parameters of small vehicles.

The key advantage with TE is that it produces continuous power without recharging from an ambient heat source.

Experiments show that scavenging heat from hybrid engines could provide continuous power generation. If you have a mix of TE and battery power units, the batteries would never need recharging.