A new development by partly government-backed Fluidic Energy could potentially extend the battery life of notebooks, cars and other devices well beyond existing lithium-ion cells. Known as Metal-Air Ionic Liquid (MAIL), it would improve energy storage beyond relatively efficient zinc-air batteries by using an ionic liquid salt to conduct electricity that is much more stable and isn't prone to drying out either by accident or by eventual decay. The move would let battery makers use metals denser than zinc and therefore hold a much larger charge in a given volume.
