History
Silver-based electrochemical systems, energy crises, the 1979–1980 market and the connections between earlier research and modern EVs.
The first silver–zinc batteries
The first practical silver–zinc rechargeable batteries: Henri André's work, military programmes in the 1940s and the technology's spread in the 1950s.
Read article →Spaceflight and the first electric cars
How silver–zinc batteries powered US and Soviet spacecraft, military equipment and experimental vehicles.
Read article →The silver market and the Hunt brothers
Market participants, macroeconomics and the hypothesis that technological demand may have been underestimated.
Read article →The shift towards lithium batteries
Lithium-ion batteries became the foundation of portable electronics and electric vehicles, while silver–zinc and silver-based solid-state systems retained specialised niches.
Read article →Silver, new energy technologies and the foundations of the EV era
As silver prices declined after the 2011 peak, the metal acquired new roles in silicon anodes and solid-state cells. Solar power became a major consumer, while the mass-market lithium-ion industry laid the foundations for the more ambitious battery projects of the 2020s.
Read article →From 1980s ideas to the industrial race
Earlier research provides a foundation for new batteries, bringing renewed attention to silver's role in the energy transition.
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