April 12th, 2023<\/p>\n
This podcast is dedicated to an energy storage device that is often underestimated in materials science: the ultracapacitor. This is installed, for example, for regenerative braking in vehicles such as buses, trains, cranes and trains. The high-performance energy storage devices are also found in wind turbines. dr Sebastian Pohlmann is Vice President of Business Development at the Estonian company Skeleton Technologies. Skeleton is a developer and manufacturer of energy storage devices for transport, grid and automotive applications. dr Simon Fleischmann heads the “Nanoconfined Electrochemical Interfaces” working group at the Helmholtz Institute in Ulm.<\/p>\n
In fact, they already exist today, the hybrids of batteries and supercapacitors. The materials researchers are trying to make use of the characteristics of both worlds: The goal of combining the power density of the capacitors and the energy density of the batteries is not groundbreakingly new, but it seems more promising than ever.<\/p>\n
The Estonian company Skeleton Technologies leads the way with its “SuperBattery”: These hybrid (battery-like) supercapacitors achieve up to 50,000 charging cycles with an ultra-fast 1-minute charge. The “SuperBattery” – like every supercapacitor – is said to be free of cobalt, copper and nickel. So-called “curved graphs” are also used. In the podcast, HIU scientist Dr. Fleischmann gives an assessment of what to think of this battery innovation. The “SuperBattery” is to be used in hybrid and fuel cell electric vehicles, buses, trucks and charging infrastructure. The company is also hoping to soon be able to produce large quantities of mining and off-road machines.<\/p>\n