Microsoft and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), a U.S. Department of Energy laboratory, have discovered a new material that could potentially reduce lithium use in batteries by up to 70%. This discovery was made possible through the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and supercomputing, which helped to narrow down 32 million potential inorganic materials to 18 promising candidates in less than a week. This process would have traditionally taken over two decades using conventional lab research methods.
The new material, currently referred to as N2116, is a solid-state electrolyte that has been tested by scientists from raw material to a working prototype. Solid-state batteries are considered safer than traditional liquid or gel-like lithium batteries and promise to be more energy-dense with thousands of charge cycles.
The AI technology used in this discovery is a new type developed by Microsoft, trained on molecular data to understand chemistry. After the AI software identified the 18 potential candidates, battery experts at PNNL selected the final substance to be developed in the lab.
Lithium, a key component in rechargeable batteries, is expected to face a shortage by 2025 due to increasing demand, particularly from the electric vehicle industry. The discovery of a material that reduces lithium use could therefore have significant implications for sustainable energy storage.
Jason Zander, Executive Vice President of Microsoft, said, “One of the tech giant’s missions was to ‘compress 250 years of scientific discovery into the next 25’. And we think technology like this will help us do that. This is the way that this type of science I think is going to get done in the future.”
Dr. Nuria Tapia-Ruiz, who leads a team of battery researchers at Imperial College London, said, “Any material with reduced amounts of lithium and good energy storage capabilities are ‘the holy grail’ in the lithium-ion battery industry. AI and supercomputing will become crucial tools for battery researchers in the upcoming years to help predict new high-performing materials.”
However, Dr. Edward Brightman, lecturer in chemical engineering at the University of Strathclyde, cautioned that the technology should be “treated with a bit of caution”.
Karl Mueller from PNNL said, “The AI insights from Microsoft pointed us ‘to potentially fruitful territory so much faster’ than under normal working conditions. [We could] modify, test and tune the chemical composition of this new material and quickly evaluate its technical viability for a working battery, showing the promise of advanced AI to accelerate the innovation cycle.”
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