Pioneering work on materials for energy production, such as lithium ion batteries, has made ANSTO a centre of specialist capabilities and expertise.
(…)
In addition to the research on lithium-ion batteries; the team also investigates other types of batteries that can reversibly host ions, such as sodium and potassium ion batteries.
Dr Christophe Didier, a post-doc working with Peterson at the ACNS and shared with Peterson’s University of Wollongong collaborators, published work in Advanced Energy Materials providing structural insights into layered manganese oxide electrodes for potassium-Ion batteries.
“In this case, we were able to use X-rays on an operating battery at the Australian Synchrotron, because potassium has a lot more electrons than lithium.”
These results again confirm the importance of understanding the detailed structural evolution that underpins performance that will inform the strategic design of electrode materials for high-performance potassium ion batteries. “We do have many collaborators but we are always interested in new projects. Because we are knowledgeable in the materials themselves, we can contribute to the selection of suitable materials as well as leading the characterisation effort.
>Read more on the Australian Synchrotron (ANSTO) website
Image: Powder diffraction instrument scientist, Dr Qinfen Gu at the Australian Synchrotron.