” By enabling the large-scale storage of eco-friendly energy, Donald Sadoways innovation is a big step towards the implementation of carbon-free electrical energy generation,” says António Campinos, President of the European Patent Office. “He has spent his career studying electrochemistry and has transformed this expertise into a creation that represents a big action forward in the transition to green energy.”
Teacher Sadoway was honored at the 2022 European Inventor Award event at Munichs Bavaria Studios on June 21. The award is among Europes a lot of prominent development prizes. It exists annually to impressive innovators from Europe and beyond who have made a remarkable contribution to technological progress, society, and economic growth.
Donald Sadoway is the John F. Elliott Professor of Materials Chemistry in MITs Department of Materials Science and Engineering. Credit: Todd Wilson
When accepting the award in Munich, Sadoway told the audience:
” I am astonished. When I take a look at all the patented innovations that are represented at this occasion I see an abundance of quality, all of them options to pushing problems. I wonder if the judges are evaluating not just degrees of excellence but degrees of urgency. The liquid metal battery addresses an existential danger to the health of our environment which relates to environment modification.
” By hosting this occasion the EPO commemorates creation. The thread that connects all the inventors is their efforts to make the world a better place.
Sadoways liquid metal batteries include 3 liquid layers of different densities, which naturally separate in the same way as oil and vinegar perform in a salad dressing. The bottom and leading layers are made from molten metals, with a middle layer of molten liquid salt.
To keep the metals liquid, the batteries need to run at exceptionally heats, so Sadoway developed a system that is self-heating and insulated, requiring no external heating or cooling. They have a life expectancy of more than 20 years, can preserve 99 percent of their capacity over 5,000 charging cycles, and have no combustible products, meaning there is no fire danger.
In 2010, with a patent for his innovation and support from Bill Gates, Sadoway co-founded Ambri, based in Marlborough, Massachusetts just outside Boston, to develop a commercial product. The business will quickly set up a system on a 3,700-acre advancement for an information center in Nevada. This battery will save energy from a reported 500 megawatts of on-site renewable generation, the exact same output as a natural gas power plant.
Born in 1950 into a household of Ukrainian immigrants in Canada, Sadoway studied chemical metallurgy concentrating on what he calls “extreme electrochemistry”– chemical responses in molten salts and liquid metals that have been warmed to over 500 degrees Celsius. After making his BASc, MASc, and PhD, all from the University of Toronto, he joined the professors at MIT in 1978.
Teacher Sadoway was honored at the 2022 European Inventor Award ceremony at Munichs Bavaria Studios on June 21. I wonder if the judges are examining not just degrees of quality but degrees of seriousness. The liquid metal battery addresses an existential danger to the health of our environment which is associated to environment change.
In 2010, with a patent for his creation and assistance from Bill Gates, Sadoway co-founded Ambri, based in Marlborough, Massachusetts just outside Boston, to establish an industrial product. This battery will keep energy from a reported 500 megawatts of on-site eco-friendly generation, the very same output as a natural gas power plant.
The liquid metal batteries created by Donald Sadoway include three liquid layers of different densities, which naturally separate in the same way as oil and vinegar perform in a salad dressing. The middle layer of molten liquid salt is surrounded by the bottom and top layers made from molten metals.
MIT professor Donald Sadoways work might allow long-lasting storage of renewable resource.
For his work on liquid metal batteries that might make it possible for the long-lasting storage of renewable resource, MIT Professor Donald Sadoway has won the 2022 European Inventor Award, in the category for Non-European Patent Office Countries.
Sadoway is a long time advocate and buddy of MITs Materials Research Laboratory and is the John F. Elliott Professor of Materials Chemistry in MITs Department of Materials Science and Engineering.
By Elizabeth A. Thomson, MIT Products Research Lab
July 15, 2022
