Here at Perth Electric Bicycles we try to stay at the forefront of battery technology. This is why we are always keeping a close eye on new technologies such as the new Aluminium Ion Battery.

There are 4 primary advantages of Aluminium Ion when compared to Lithium Ion.

• Can be charged in a matter of minutes. The fast charging potential is huge. Once we have charging stations every 30km or so you can simply take a break and charge your battery to full, making your range virtually unlimited. This means you would require a much smaller battery, saving weight and money.
• They last almost 10 times longer than Lithium Ion. Early experiments could get up to 7,500 charges out of a single battery. Even if you charge it twice every day that equates to over 10 years!
• They are extremely durable. Lithium ion batteries are pretty tough, but if you break them or wire them up wrong they can stop working or start overheating. You can drill right through and aluminium battery and it will continue to work safely.
• Aluminium is cheaper to produce than Lithium. This doesn’t mean that the batteries themselves are cheaper, as they are a much younger technology. It does mean that there is potential in the long run for them to be mass produced very cheaply.

So why don’t we see these batteries everywhere yet? The answer is simply energy density. An aluminum battery will not hold as much power as a lithium battery of the same weight. However, as fast charging stations for cars and bikes become more common the viability of aluminium will increase.