Stanford Claims Al-Ion Battery Breakthrough

Stanford University scientists have invented the first high-performance aluminum battery that's fast-charging, long-lasting and inexpensive. Researchers say the new technology offers a safe alternative to many commercial batteries in wide use today.

"We have developed a rechargeable aluminum battery that may replace existing storage devices, such as alkaline batteries, which are bad for the environment, and lithium-ion batteries, which occasionally burst into flames," said Hongjie Dai, a professor of chemistry at Stanford. "Our new battery won't catch fire, even if you drill through it."

Dai and his colleagues describe their novel aluminum-ion battery in "An ultrafast rechargeable aluminum-ion battery," in the April 6 advance online edition of the journal Nature.

Aluminum has long been an attractive material for batteries, mainly because of its low cost, low flammability and high-charge storage capacity. For decades, researchers have tried unsuccessfully to develop a commercially viable aluminum-ion battery. A key challenge has been finding materials capable of producing sufficient voltage after repeated cycles of charging and discharging.

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I'll be getting into the new cycle for the downshift here, promise.

Low Cost Aluminum 3d Printing

Substrate Release Mechanisms for Gas Metal Arc Weld 3D Aluminum Metal Printing

Authors:

Haselhuhn et al

Abstract:

Limited material options, prohibitively expensive equipment, and high production costs currently limit the ability of small and medium enterprises to use 3D printing to prototype and manufacture metallic goods. A low-cost open-source 3D metal printer that utilizes gas metal arc welding technology has been developed that could make metal printing accessible to the average consumer. Unfortunately, this technology would demand access to expensive cutting tools for part removal from the substrate. This article investigates several substrate treatments to provide a low-cost method to easily remove 3D-printed 1100 aluminum parts from a reusable substrate. Coatings of aluminum oxide and boron nitride on 1100 aluminum and A36 low-carbon steel substrates were tested. Lap shear tests were performed to assess the interlayer adhesion between the printed metal part and the print substrate. No warping of the substrate was observed during printing. It was determined that boron nitride-coated low-carbon steel provided the lowest adhesion strength. Printing aluminum on uncoated low-carbon steel also allowed easy removal of the aluminum part with the benefit of no additional coating steps or costs.

Ford to Attempt to Sell All Aluminum F Series Pickup, Shave 750 lbs off Vehicle

There are beer cans, and then there are Humvees. Ford Motor Co. will take pains to show its new, aluminum F-150 pickup has more in common with combat vehicles.

Ford will introduce an aluminum F series -- its anticipated and high-stakes redesign of the top-selling pickup in history -- at next month's Detroit auto show, according to people familiar with Ford's plans.

The automaker has asked Alcoa Inc., which makes aluminum blast shields for battlefield-bound vehicles, to lend some of its military-grade metal for the automaker's display, said one of those people, who asked not to be identified because the plans are secret.

Ford's sales job will be considerable: The company is eager to demonstrate the toughness of aluminum, which is lighter than steel, to pickup buyers who've made F-150 the bedrock of its business.

Any snafus would weigh on earnings that Ford already is projecting will decline next year and add to the challenges facing Mark Fields, likely the company's next chief executive officer.

At last year's Detroit show, he pledged that Ford would take as much as 750 pounds (340 kilograms) out of its next- generation trucks to meet tightening fuel-economy regulations.

"This is already the most significant debut at the auto show," said Joe Langley, a production analyst for researcher IHS Automotive. "Everybody's going to be dissecting that thing for a long time, especially since Ford will be taking such a big gamble."

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