Structure of electrolyte controls battery performance
(PHYSorg.com Chemistry)

The research team at the Department of Electrical and Electronic Information Engineering, Toyohashi University of Technology has reported that adding water into an electrolyte improves the function of vanadium oxide, a positive electrode material in calcium-ion batteries. Although water in electrolytes is known to produce many negative effects, it has now been found to induce a phenomenon that speeds up the conventionally slow reaction of calcium-ion batteries. The results indicate that this phenomenon is caused by changes in the electrolyte structure. The researchers believe that this discovery will greatly benefit the development of electrolytes for implementing calcium-ion batteries in the future.