Researchers at Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Australia, have developed supercapacitors that can be embedded into a car’s body panels, roof, doors, bonnet and floor to turbocharge its electric battery within a few minutes.
Supercapacitors are deigned to provide a high-power density, and can be used with the normal battery to increase the power of the car.
With a single charge the car is expected to run up to 500km, which is more than double the capacity of the current generation electric cars.
QUT PhD researcher Marco Notarianni said that that electric vehicles need an extra energy spurt for acceleration, with the supercapacitors holding and delivering the charge quickly to provide high power output in a shorter time.
Supercapacitors co-developer Dr Dr Liu said: "Supercapacitors are presently combined with standard Li-Ion batteries to power electric cars, with a substantial weight reduction and increase in performance."
"In the future, it is hoped the supercapacitor will be developed to store more energy than a Li-Ion battery while retaining the ability to release its energy up to 10 times faster – meaning the car could be entirely powered by the supercapacitors in its body panels."
