Li-ion batteries: news, progress, history and background

Ioxus Inc. is an up and comer in the energy storage industry that has plans this Monday to announce a new hybrid storage device that it hopes will radically alter batteries used in the auto, medical, and consumer electronics industries. The teased product is said to be roughly the size of a typical C-cell battery and combines the fast charge / discharge benefits of ultracapacitors with the impressive energy-to-weight ratio of a lithium-ion electrode. As a result, Ioxus says the hybrid devices can store more than double the energy of traditional ultracapacitors and charge in a matter of seconds. The catch is that the hybrids have shorter life spans of 20,000 cycles compared to millions of cycles for typical ultracapacitors. We're also taking this with a grain of skepticism until these claims are proven in the field. Some brief digging though did unearth an article written by MIT researchers and published in Scientific American last year that discusses the possible benefits of s...

Tokyo -- Tales of burning notebook PCs that hit the news last summer raised serious concerns among consumers about the safety of lithium-ion batteries. Responding to those fears, Japan's battery and PC industries have jointly hammered out guidelines for the safe use of Li-ion batteries. The industries' task force has also presented its proposal to the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). "We have worked hard since last October for lithium-ion battery safety. The resulting guidelines are designed to eliminate serious problems, such as catching fire," said Masami Yamamoto, corporate vice president of Fujitsu Ltd., who chaired the safety committee formed last fall by the Japan Electronics & Information Technology Industries Association (JEITA) and the Battery Association of Japan. As the next step, the team intends to expand the guidelines beyond notebooks to other applications, such as cell phones. The guidelines are not intended to clarify the cause of ...

The Bolloré Group is a French company with revenues of nearly 6 billion euros in 2006. This leading battery manufacturer has just acquired the assets of Avestor, a Quebec firm previously operated by Hydro-Quebec and Anadarko. As a result, some fifty people will now be working on the development of lithium-metal-polymer (LMP) batteries to be used in electric cars. This is great news for companies involved in the development of electric car technologies and high-performance batteries for this type of vehicle. In addition to strengthening the significant power of the Bolloré Group in this field of expertise, the recent purchase of Avestor will give a new boost to this industry and reinforce Quebec's position in the development of advanced terrestrial transportation. Besides the facilities near Quimper, France, the Bolloré Group will benefit from a new 12,000 square meter plant in Boucherville, which will manufacture zero-maintenance, high-performance batteries. Even though both firms ...

Another ad for A123 and their battery on The New York Times (previous week ago - Forbes, see below): A123Systems, a start-up in Watertown, Mass., says it has created a powerful, safe, long-lived battery. If the cell fulfills the ambitions of its maker, that softer sound will be the future of automobiles. A123Systems’ ambition is to apply a new technology, born from original science, to solve a difficult problem. The company’s chairman is Gururaj Deshpande, the entrepreneur who also is a co-founder and chairman of Sycamore Networks. As he explained: “This company can play a role in reducing our dependence on oil and in cleaning up the environment. Any company that gets to contribute to those efforts in whatever measure would have done good in the world.” Full story

LEVconference.org : "Light Electric Vehicle Conference 2007 Hsinchu Taiwan, March 20-23, 2007" Highlights 20 March 2007: EnergyBus The industry meets to to learn about and discuss the further developlment of the EnergyBus. Experts will explain the functions and advantages of this stan- dardized communication protocol and its plug system. In one sentence: It will revolutionize the LEV world. 21 March 2007: Battery Safety Leading manufacturers will provide an insight into the latest battery developments. Learn all about battery shipment and testing according to UN regulations and the liability of LEV manufacturers and distributors – a key issue after prominent battery fires in the past. 22 March 2007: Technology The most innovative motor, transmission sensor, power electronics, and chip manufacturers will present their achievements and future strategies. ExtraEnergy will present the latest results of the 2006/07 pedelec and e-bike tests. 23 March 2007: Markets and Legislation N...

Taipei Int'l Cycle Show 2007 / 2007/03/24 ~ 2007/03/27 News and information about this show will be available soon.

Nano-Batteries That Keep On Going - Forbes.com : "Nano-Batteries That Keep On Going Josh Wolfe, Forbes/Wolfe Nanotech Report 03.06.08, 4:30 PM ET" An interesting article was published today on Forbes about continue developing affords on battery technology implementing nano-particles as active material. The article focused on potential market and main (so far) player A123 leaving behind technical problems and/or advantage. Most interesting here that "in December, the U.S. Advanced Battery Consortium, a group that includes DaimlerChrysler (nyse: DCX - news - people ), Ford Motor (nyse: F - news - people ) and General Motors (nyse: GM - news - people ), awarded A123 Systems a 36-month, $15 million contract. The contract will fund development of a lower-cost lithium-ion phosphate battery technology with enhanced power, lifetime and durability for hybrid-electric vehicle applications". "Also, earlier this month, GM awarded contracts for undisclosed sums ...