Developers Li-ion battery win Nobel Prize in Chemistry

For their work in developing lithium-ion batteries, the 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry has been awarded to John Goodenough, Stanley Whittingham and Akira Yoshino. “Lithium-ion batteries have revolutionized our lives since they first entered the market in 1991. They’ve laid the foundation of a wireless, fossil-fuel-free society, and are of the greatest benefit to humankind,” the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said.

Whittingham laid the foundation for the lithium-ion battery during the oil crisis in the 1970s. While researching superconductors, he created a material, titanium disulfide, that can ‘absorb’ (intercalate) lithium ions. Britain-born Whittingham used that material to make the first primitive Li-ion battery.

While the battery literally produced great potential, over two volts, Goodenough realized an oxide would work even better as a cathode than a sulfide. After an extensive search, the researcher born in Germany demonstrated that cobalt oxide produces as much as four volts.