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You Can Now Charge Your Flying Car for Five Minutes and Take a 50-Mile Ride

How would you like it to take a 50-mile ride in your flying car on a single five-minute charge? A recent development in battery technology brings this dream closer to reality.
Kelekona 40-seater eVTOL 6 photos
Photo: Kelekona
Rendering of Kelekona's new air bus designRendering of Kelekona's new air bus designRendering of Kelekona's new air bus designRendering of Kelekona's new air bus designRendering of Kelekona's new air bus design
You can’t even charge your phone in five minutes, but this team of researchers has managed to come up with a battery technology that allows you to charge an eVTOL (electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing) aircraft in just five minutes, offering a range of 50 miles (81 km).

This is not the first time researcher Chao-Yang Wang from the Pennsylvania State University wows us with his developments in the battery technology field. It’s only been two years since the engineer built a prototype battery that can charge electric vehicles in only 10 minutes, offering a range of 200 to 300 miles (320 to 483 km).

Now, the researcher and his team have extended the utility of that battery design, making it suitable for eVTOLs. While at this time the battery can only offer 50 miles of flight, it takes you only five minutes to charge your flying vehicle and take off.

Batteries needed to power eVTOLs require a very high energy density, for both their vertical take-off and landing as well as for keeping the aircraft in the air.

According to the study published by the team of researchers, conventional lithium-ion batteries used in this type of vehicles only work fine in a certain temperature range. Cold or hot conditions can affect them.

Chao-Yang Wang has managed to come up with a way to heat the battery to 140 degrees Fahrenheit (60 degrees C) in only 30 seconds and keep it at that temperature for 10 minutes. After that, the battery is cooled down. The battery developed by the team at the Pennsylvania University can be charged in such a short time (five to ten minutes) thanks to that exact technology that brings it to that high temperature so rapidly.

In addition to charging that quickly, the battery is also durable, with a lifespan of over 2,000 fast charges.

Wang stated that this breakthrough proves the viability of eVTOLs and hopes to see them commercially available as soon as possible.
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Editor's note: Kelekona air bus eVTOL rendering in the photo gallery.

About the author: Cristina Mircea
Cristina Mircea profile photo

Cristina’s always found writing more comfortable to do than speaking, which is why she chose print over broadcast media in college. When she’s not typing, she also loves riding non-motorized two-wheelers, going on hikes with her dog, and rocking her electric guitars.
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