Texas A&M develops first metallic gel for batteries

Texas A&M University researchers have developed the first known metallic gel that traps liquid metal within a solid metallic scaffold and demonstrated its use as electrodes in a lab-scale liquid metal battery (LMB). The discovery was led by Dr. Michael J. Demkowicz with first author doctoral student Charles Borenstein and published in Advanced Engineering Materials.

• Main announcement & demonstration: The team created the metallic gel by mixing two metal powders and heating so one metal liquefies while the other remains solid to form a microscopic scaffold; a copper–tantalum composite (example: 25% Ta / 75% Cu) retained gel form, and any composition with >18% tantalum preserved the gel structure. They built a small lab LMB using an anode of liquid calcium + solid iron and a cathode of liquid bismuth + iron, submerged in a molten salt electrolyte; the cell produced electricity while the mostly liquid electrodes maintained shape at very high temperatures (~1,000°C / 1,832°F).
• Methods, authorship & support: Internal high-resolution micro-CT at the University of Texas facility confirmed a tantalum scaffold holding liquid copper; authors include Dr. Michael J. Demkowicz, Charles Borenstein (first author), Dr. Brady G. Butler, Dr. James D. Paramore, and Dr. Karl T. Hartwig. The work is supported by the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Nuclear Security Administration. Potential applications noted include transportable LMBs for ships, heavy industrial vehicles, and hypersonic vehicles investigated by the Texas A&M Consortium for Applied Hypersonics.