Nowadays, Because of the huge power consumption amount and the environmental problems caused by oil usage as the

worlds total primary resource, the need for a new and environmental friendly energy attracts interests from scientists all over the world. From the energy saving perspective, Li-air battery technology looks to have a big future. Because lithium airs capacity of 5-10 times that of standard Lithium-ion batteries, It could even rival the energy density of petroleum -- one of the most energy-packed substances on earth. That makes lithium air batteries the subject of intense, increased, and widespread research focus for use as high-energy batteries. [1] What makes them different is lithium air batteries fundamentally use a catalytic air cathode that converts oxygen to lithium peroxide, which is an electrolyte, and a lithium anode. Li-air batteries are similar in principle to lithium-ion batteries. However, Li-air batteries electrochemically couple a lithium anode to atmospheric oxygen through a carbon-based air cathode instead of the heavy conventional compounds found in lithium-ion batteries.[2] This means they are able to have higher energy density because of the lighter cathode and the fact that oxygen is freely available in the environment and doesnt need to be stored in the battery. The significant increase in energy density afforded by a Li-air battery opens opportunities for lithium based power storage that current lithium based batteries could not hope to fulfill. From the environmental friendly perspective, the basic principle that drives a metal-air battery is the fact that oxygen, which is totally environmental friendly substance, can be used as a light cathode for a battery. Current batteries have reduced maximum overall efficiency and damaged the environment because the heavy metals that are used as cathodes are ultimately limited by their own density and availability. Oxygen, on the other hand, is a lot lighter, is readily available everywhere, and is technically inexhaustible. Instead of carrying Oxygen as a reagent in the battery as in the Lithium Ion battery, the Lithium Air battery use oxygen available abundantly from the environment, thus, we can save weight and volume and protect the environment. I think Chemical Engineering principles guide the improvement of Li-air batteries. They are best reflected in the challenges researcher realize they are facing now, which also become the objectives scientists want to achieve. One of the biggest challenges facing Li-air batteries is their limited number of charge/discharge cycles. Whereas Lithium-ion batteries can be recharged more than 100,000 times, Li-air batteries can be recharged only about 50 times. This is a problem about sustainability of Li-air batteries. Also, we need to consider the principle of stability in the process of optimizing this new kind of batteries. Long-term battery operation requires chemical stability of all the components of the cell. Current cell designs show poor resistance to oxidation by the reaction products and intermediates. Many aqueous electrolytes are also volatile, and can be lost over time. One of the

largest barriers to fully operable commercial cells is the development of effective environmental interfaces. Atmospheric oxygen is intrinsically required for cell operation, but the cell must be shielded from the environment, as water vapor can rapidly degrade the system. [3] Today, lithium-ion batteries are commonplace and commercialized for laptops and cell phones. But the larger batteries needed for cars remain their most expensive component -- and the one deemed most essential to helping millions reach the road. In the coming years, many expect these costs to decline. Even so, plenty in the battery field foresee the day that Lithium-ion, so essential to the present day, will face retirement. So Li-air batteries should replace lithium-ion batteries at a cheaper price. A material may "breathe" oxygen into the battery excellently, but it has little commercial potential if it's platinum or gold. Lithium in the anode reacts explosively with even a little water, so it must be sheltered with a stable and, yes, cheap substance. "Lithium-ion batteries will get us partway there. But in reality, they're not quite high enough in energy density or quite low enough in cost." said Jeffrey Chamberlain, head of Argonne's Energy Storage Major Initiative and one of the lab's leading battery chemists.[4] This complies with the principle of cost effective. There are two safety concerns to be considered with Li-air batteries. The first one is the use of lithium metal anodes that can short-circuit the battery and react aggressively with a lot of contaminants. The other one is about the presumed dominant reaction product of aprotic cellLi2O2, which is a strong oxidizer. These two safety problems need to be solved so that Li-air batteries can be put into practice. Safety is an important principle of Chemical Engineering so researchers must make sure Li-air batteries are safe to use. Although Li-air batteries demonstrate an encouraging potential of being the future electric propulsion source, various limitations remain to be tackled before the full transition. With a promising high specific energy storage capacity, many challenges are to be overcome in the future research and development of Li-air batteries. When commercially available and if everything goes as planned, the Li-air batteries would take us closer to a better and greener future.

1 The Lithium Air Battery Makes Progress. New energy and fuel. http://newenergyandfuel.com/http:/newenergyandfuel/com/2011/03/28/the-lithium-air-battery-m akes-progress/

2 Li-airbatteries offer three times the energy density Lithium-air-battery. Darren Quick. Gizmag http://www.gizmag.com/lithium-air-battery/14720/ 3 Are Lithium Air Batteries the Future of Electric Vehicles? Batteries. Hybridcars http://www.hybridcars.com/batteries/are-lithium-air-batteries-future-electric-vehicles-27957.htm l 4 Will Li-airBattery Rescue Electric Car Drivers From 'Range Anxiety'?. Energy and Environment. http://www.nytimes.com/cwire/2010/05/07/07climatewire-will-lithium-air-battery-rescue-electri c-car-37498.html?pagewanted=all