Sulfur battery breakthrough could power electric planes, trains, and automobiles

Lithium-ion batteries, the ones inside most smartphones and electric cars, could be replaced with a whole new chemical composition that would make them work even more efficiently.

The battery standard is used in a variety of devices – including laptops, smartwatches and e-cigarettes – but the batteries simply cannot keep up with the development of consumer technology.

Lithium-sulfur batteries have been suggested as a potential alternative, but the accumulation of lithium sulfide and lithium polysulfide eventually degrades the batteries.

The issue is so well documented it is known as the “polysulfide shuttle”, as electrolytes move from one end of the battery to another.