Microsoft Uses AI To Discover New Material That Could Reduce Lithium Use In Batteries By 70%

Artificial intelligence (AI) has been used to discover a new substance that could change the face of the renewable energy market forever. Why? Because this substance may be able to reduce the use of lithium in rechargeable batteries by 70%. It's a sign of AI's increasing power to drive innovation across a wide range of industries. Everyone from automakers to golf club manufacturers is harnessing the power of AI, and this latest discovery could be a game-changer.

The substance was discovered by Microsoft Corp., working in cooperation with the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). They discovered that by using a combination of AI and supercomputers to screen 32 million different materials for their desired traits. This combination of supercomputers and AI boiled that down to a list of 18 high-potential candidates in roughly 80 hours. That's just over three days.

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In a blog post regarding the discovery, Microsoft estimated that using traditional, non-AI methods to make a similar discovery might have taken decades. This is to say nothing of the cost in terms of materials and brainpower. Even before narrowing the list down to 18, the AI came up with a list of 500,000 potential candidates, which is still more than could have been handled without AI screening out all but the best options.

Lithium is an important material in the creation of rechargeable batteries, which by extension makes it a potentially invaluable weapon in the fight against climate change. The more renewable energy sources in existence, the less humanity is dependent on fossil fuels that damage the environment. Unfortunately, lithium is not a material that is plentiful or easily harvested.

The current known supply is not enough to suit global demand, and even if it were, harvesting lithium and converting it into a usable product has negative environmental implications. So, a substance that would allow people to make rechargeable batteries of the same potency while using 70% less lithium would result in a quantum leap forward in the world's renewable energy capabilities.

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Specifically, EV batteries, which must be tremendously strong to power automobiles, stand to benefit from any gains in lithium capability or availability brought about by this discovery. That would also be a potential boon to the entire EV industry in terms of its ability to create newer, better vehicles. Then there is the potential for new job creation brought about by increased demand for those new and improved products.

The importance of lithium was underscored by Vijay Murugesan, group leader of PNNL's material science division, who said in a Microsoft blog post, "Lithium and other strategic elements used in these batteries are finite resources with limited and geographically concentrated supplies. One of the main thrusts of our work at PNNL has been identifying new materials for increased energy storage needs of the future; ones made with sustainable materials that conserve and protect the Earth's limited resources."

As companies like Microsoft continue to collaborate with partners in both the private and public sectors (such as PNNL) on harnessing the power of AI, the potential for newer, better developments such as this will grow. It's impossible to know what AI will discover next, but these kinds of advances will become more necessary in the fight against climate change and the full range of challenges facing humankind in the 21^st century.

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