GM Claims It Has Developed Better Batteries

The main reason that all cars aren't electric can be summed up by the fact that the batteries (or other energy storage devices) needed to make it a clear economically preferred option to do so are too expensive, have to short a range, take too long to recharge, and perform too poorly in cold weather.

So, anytime an advance is made in battery technology that is a big deal bringing us closer to the tipping point when we transition from internal combustion engine and fossil fuel based motor vehicles to all electric vehicles. This transition would also have profound implications for the environment, future demand for fossil fuels, and more.

Therefore, the claim of General Motors that it has better batteries for its new line of electric cars than electric vehicle industry leader Tesla Motors, in term of price and range, is a big deal.

General Motors isn't the only one making progress on the battery technology front.

In another recent study:

Researchers demonstrate how they can overcome a persistent challenge known as dendrites to create a metal battery that performs nearly as well as a lithium-ion battery, but relies on potassium -- a much more abundant and less expensive element.

The paper is:

Prateek Hundekar, et al., "In situ healing of dendrites in a potassium metal battery." PNAS, 2020 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1915470117