Electric vehicle battery "breakthrough"

Engineers have reportedly discovered a way to recharge electric cars in just 10 minutes, overcoming one of the biggest obstacles with electric vehicles.

Researchers at Pennsylvania State University said they have developed a lithium-ion battery capable of adding 200 to 300 miles of driving range to an electric car in 10 minutes by charging it at an elevated temperature.

The Independent reports that senior author Chao-Yang Wang, a mechanical engineer at Penn State University, said, "In addition to fast charging, this design allows us to limit the battery’s exposure time to the elevated charge temperature, thus generating a very long cycle life."

“The key is to realise rapid heating; otherwise, the battery will stay at elevated temperatures for too long, causing severe degradation... The 10-minute trend is for the future and is essential for adoption of electric vehicles because it solves the range anxiety problem," added Wang.

According to The Independent the faster charging process could be carried out without causing significant damage to the battery, meaning it could sustain 2,500 charging cycles – the equivalent of half a million miles of travel. Typical lithium-ion batteries would only last around 60 charges using the new method.