A team of UK and US scientists has developed a new technology to see inside of batteries without destroying them.

Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) has been extremely successful in the medical field to see the inside of patients’ bodies. But MRI does not work in the presence of a lot of metal because the surfaces block the signals.

However, the new technique could perform fine measurements on the surface of batteries and this could create the possibility of improving battery performance and safety. In the case of popular lithium-ion batteries, the new technology helped to see the build-up of the metal, which could eventually lead to overheating or risk of an explosion.

Alexej Jerschow, a professor at New York University who is working on the research said: “New electrode and electrolyte materials are constantly being developed and this non-invasive MRI technology could provide insights into the microscopic processes inside batteries, which hold the key to eventually making batteries lighter, safer and more versatile.”

This new technology could be the answer to the increasing need for advanced batteries used in portable electronics, power electric vehicles and facilitate the distribution and storage of energy derived from renewable energy resources.