Toshiba Announces Plan to Make Lithium-Ion Batteries for EVs and Plug-In Hybrids

[AZEqualizer]

According to Green Car Advisor (http://blogs.edmunds.com/greencaradvisor/2008/10/toshiba-announces-plan-to-make-lithium-ion-batteries-for-evs-and-plug-in-hybrids.html):
Since the article was small I posted the whole thing for your convince.
http://blogs.edmunds.com/greencaradvisor/Toshiba-Logo-300.jpg
Japanese electronics giant Toshiba Corp. announced today that has joined the race to mass produce lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids.
Toshiba aims to make 3 million lithium-ion battery cells a month starting in 2010, the company said. Battery packs for hybrid cars can contain hundreds of cells. The company now makes 150,000 cells a month, mostly for electric bicycles.
Toshiba said its plans include an investment of $194.2 million to expand battery production to cars by 2010. It will join the ranks of Japan's Sanyo Electric Co., Panasonic EV Energy Co. and NEC Corp. developing lithium-ion batteries for automakers.
Lithium-ion batteries are key to making hybrid and electric vehicles commonplace, because they are lighter and more powerful than current generation of nickel-metal hydride batteries.
Toshiba said its SCiB lithium batteries use a lithium-titanium oxide negative electrode that makes their batteries more stable than typical lithium-ion batteries, which use carbon-based negative electrodes.
The SCiB batteries also generate less heat, which reduces the risk of fire, the company said. Toshiba further claimed that its batteries can recharge to 90 percent capacity in only five minutes.

http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autobloggreen.com/media/2008/10/scib-battery.jpg

[Miracleman89]

Now there is a name I am familiar with!!! I own a Toshiba TV and I love it!!! Picture quality is better then my buddy's $3000 HD TV!!! If Toshiba is getting into the mix we may start to see some serious competition and really lower the prices!!!

[JustGrif]

I was just reading an article about these batteries a while ago on Gizmodo. They're evidently making waves with these things in the laptop market because of the quick charge time and the fact that they age well. Awesome that they're looking into the car (and hopefully the overwhelmingly popular tilting 3-wheel) market.=y:

http://gizmodo.com/5056820/toshiba-super-charge-laptop-batteries-hit-90-in-10-minutes-age-well

[ziggy951]

How well do they age?




Z

[JustGrif]

It mentions something like 10x the lifespan of a typical Lithium Ion battery...

from the article:
"...remarkable lifespan (5000-6000 charge cycles to a normal lithium ion's 500)."

The article is more about the laptop versions of this battery... and I unfortunately don't know enough about batteries to have any idea if this same lifespan will translate when they go for EV batteries.du:n:n:o(

Here's hoping...

Regards,
J

[ziggy951]

That would indeed be something to be hopeful about. Now lets see what kind of pricing structure they can come up with for an EV application.


Z

[westonlgray]

That sounds like a good life-span for a battery, as long as it can last 20 years too.

[Miracleman89]

Did I mention I love my TV??? ;) Hey Toshiba if your listening!! I could use a bigger TV too! ;) ;) ;) lol

[waboom]

Interesting side note...
When this was posted on AutoBlogGreen, they brought up an interesting point: if these technologies succeed in widespread adoption in cars, we'll move from being dependent on foreign oil to being dependent on foreign batteries!

[ziggy951]

Thats why I am hopeful in Eestor. Mainly because of the "targeted" price point and longevity.


Z

[AZEqualizer]

WAboom... Since most of the new batteries components are migrating to lithium we will also be dependent on lithium production which is controlled by foreign countries. There is one lithium mining company in the US and it is German I believe. Why do you think China is so interested in Tibet? Could it be because they are one of the biggest producers of lithium? And South America is certainly a dominating factor in Lithium production .... which is another scary place because of the drug cartels influence on everything.

[waboom]

AZE:
My point exactly. The current mantra is "End our dependence on foreign oil!" Next it will be "End our dependence on foreign lithium!" Hopefully we'll see more places like EEStore creep out of the woodwork to come up with alternative technologies and materials for energy storage.

[AZEqualizer]

People are so eager to change hostage takers without looking at the big picture. It is going to take a lot of effort in a lot of different venues to make us more independent on a energy front. There is no easy fix but it is a shame we have to wait until people hold our wallets hostage until anyone tries to do something about it. Then we have the 'Close your eyes and it will all go away people'... It is too bad that people in power are generally motivated by greed instead of what is best for everyone.

[Mark Tomlinson]

Interesting side note...
When this was posted on AutoBlogGreen, they brought up an interesting point: if these technologies succeed in widespread adoption in cars, we'll move from being dependent on foreign oil to being dependent on foreign batteries!
Yes, but foreign batteries are recyclable. And in most proposed BEVs and PHEVs the batteries are will last years, unlike a tank of gasoline. Think of a battery as being a tank and not the fuel. Also, there really isn't that much lithium in a lithium-ion battery. And lets mention that plenty of lithium is available in the US, which allows American battery producers to enter the market with domestic materials. (I can find sources to back these claims up, but I'm really too tired right now).

More of a concern (IMHO) is that 52% of our electricity comes from coal. But I won't hijack this thread and get into that here. For this thread, I'll just say that I appluad Toshiba's advancement and am not overly concerned about battery-money going overseas.

[AZEqualizer]

Yes lithium batteries are recyclable but they are harder to do so than mining the lithium and more expensive. So It usually isn't done. Stupid reason but still there. Also forign countries can produce batteries cheaper than the US can because of more lax safty laws for the employees.

Lithium is a prevalent material but the only mining operation in the US is by if I remember correctly a German company. Most lithium is mined in South America with the area of Tibet being second. And how long they will last is still more theory than fact that is why most vehicle companies want to lease them so that they don't have to warranty them for 120k miles for even they aren't comfortable with the predictions in Vehicle use.

Coal can power electrical plants and the emissions can be diverted (finally) through a vat of algae or bacteria which has been genetically altered and it will clean the gray water it lives into potable water and excrete hydrocarbons in the direct form of anything from biodiesel to jet fuel. This is a young process but several plants are either under construction or in infantile processing.

[Miracleman89]

Thanks for the explaination AZE

[Mark Tomlinson]

AZE, I generally agree with you on this. Like everything in life, there are two sides to every energy argument, I guess.

I will note two things, though. First, I was referring to untapped lithium resources in the US. A quick Google search didn't turn up the original source of my claim, but it came out during the "peak lithium" debate a while back.

The second thing is that coal-fired power plants produce far more CO2 than algae will take in with the current science. And so far nobody's doing it. It remains to be seen where all that will go.

I remain unconcerned about a lithium cartel (LPEC?). Even if one emerges, it will be short lived as battery (and super capacitor) technology advances. Oil is refined and used directly; companies like Exxon are dependant on it. Lithium is just one alternative for energy storage and companies like Toshiba will abandon it if something better comes along. (Note also that Toshiba's announcement is about a more efficient battery - which translates to less lithium per kW). That leaves lithium producing countries sort of a window of opportunity that could vanish as quickly as it appeared.

[AZEqualizer]

It is unfortunate that the article from Popular Science on the Chevy Volt's battery construction is not available (as yet) online. The information (obtained by PopSci in Jan this year because of how much of a delay there is in magazine publishing from article creation.) was very informative about how hard and costly it is to produce battery packs for Vehicles (battery chemistry avoiding thermal failure, cell integration and longevity). Plus to get Calif Certification you have to meet and warranty the battery pack for 10yr 150k miles.

I did come across this article by Tom Krisher (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/08/14/chevy-volt-batteries-char_n_118849.html) with the AP dated Aug 14 2008:
Chevy Volt: Batteries Charge Fine, It's Carrying, Cooling And Using Them Them That's Not Ready (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/08/14/chevy-volt-batteries-char_n_118849.html)

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. — Early versions of the Chevrolet Volt's battery packs are powerful enough to run the high-stakes rechargeable car, but dozens of issues remain before General Motors Corp. can start selling the revolutionary vehicle in 2010 as planned.
The Volt's chief engineer is on a tight schedule to figure out how the car will handle the batteries' weight, dissipate their heat and mechanically transfer their power to the wheels. That's not to mention the list of issues that have nothing to do with the fact that the car plugs in to the wall for recharging.