Crave

Sony's new batteries are just available for motor-driven devices for now--thus the non-fancy label.

(Credit: Sony)

Sony on Tuesday announced a new type of rechargeable lithium ion battery that promises a life span more than four times that of current lithium ion batteries. Specifically, Sony touts a capacity retention north of 80 percent after 2,000 charge-discharge cycles.

Without getting too technical about the whole thing, the new battery uses as its cathode material olivine-type lithium iron phosphate, which Sony says is ideal for the job "due to its robust crystal structure and stable performance, even at high temperatures."

The material also apparently contributes to the battery's faster charging time--it can hit 99 percent of its full capacity in 30 minutes (approximately half the charge time of Sony's current lithium ion battery line, which mainly use cobalt oxide-based cathodes).

For the moment, the batteries will just be showing up in motor-driven devices like power tools--so if you own a cordless band saw, you're in luck. Those of us who just need to worry about powering our iPods and laptops, however, will have to wait a little while.

Updated at 2:15 p.m. PDT with the names and quantities of notebooks affected by each manufacturer.

More than two years after the largest battery recall in the electronics industry, Sony batteries have been fingered again as the culprit in more than 40 worldwide incidents of laptops overheating.

Sony and the Consumer Product Safety Commission will announce Thursday afternoon that Sony is supporting the voluntary recall of 100,000 notebook battery packs powered by Sony's 2.15Ah lithium ion cells. Thirty-five thousand of those were sold in the U.S., and 65,000 in international markets. Sony says it has shipped 260 million of these batteries since 2002.

The HP Pavilion dv1000 is among the models affected by the battery recall.

(Credit: CNET Networks)

According to the CPSC, 32,000 Hewlett-Packard notebooks, 3,000 Toshiba notebooks, and 150 Dell notebooks are said to be affected. Sony has said that its Vaio notebooks are not included in the recall as they use a different type of battery.

The 2.15Ah lithium ion battery is also not the same Sony battery involved in the massive 2006 recall, according to the company. This also, so far, appears to be on a much smaller scale than during 2006, when more than 8 million notebook batteries were recalled.

Sony says it first received reports of problems with the 2.15Ah batteries in June 2005. Since then, PC manufacturers have received reports of 40 overheating incidents worldwide. Some of the overheating resulted in smoke or flames, leading to some "small burns," and about half of the incidents included "minor property damage," according to Sony and the CPSC.

Sony believes the battery problems are isolated to some 2.15Ah batteries manufactured between October 2004 and June 2005.

"Machine settings were adjusted more frequently than usual on one line from October 2004 to June 2005, and we believe that a combination of such adjustments may have affected the quality of cells in certain manufacturing lots, creating the potential for such cells to overheat on rare occasion," said a Sony representative.

Sony says it has not received any reports of overheating on any of the batteries produced after 2006.

HP, Toshiba, and Dell have each set up their own Web sites where customers can fill out a form and receive a replacement battery pack by mail for free.

Affected models include: HP Pavilion dv1000, dv8000, and zd8000, Compaq Presario v2000 and v2400, and HP Compaq nc6110, nc6120, nc6140, nc6220, nc6230, nx4800, nx4820, nx6110, nx6120, nx9600; Toshiba Satellite A70/A75, P30/P5, M30X/M35X, and M50/M55; and Dell Latitude 110L, Inspiron 1100, 1150, 5100, 5150, and 5160.

Lithium-ion batteries. They do blow up good.

Boom!

(Credit: Sandia National Labs)

Peter Roth at Sandia National Labs is conducting research on the durability and reliability of lithium-ion batteries, which are expected to power plug-in hybrids and electric cars in the future. Lithium-ion batteries store more energy than conventional batteries--six times as much as lead acid and two to three times as much as nickel metal hydride batteries, according to Sandia. However, lithium-ion cells can have unfortunate side effects.

Namely, an internal short circuit can lead to fire and a nasty explosion. In 2006, Sony had to conduct a multimillion-dollar battery recall because some had caught fire in notebooks. The potential damage is higher in a car because electric cars will contain thousands of cells, rather than six or nine, like a notebook. The inside of a car is also a more hostile environment than the one where you ordinarily use your notebooks.

I am the god of hell fire!

(Credit: Sandia National Labs)

So Roth is driving nails into batteries, heating them up to extreme temperatures, overcharging them, and having other types of fun. That's Roth in the photo to the right preparing to blow up some batteries. The other photo shows the results of his research.

"We look at fundamental chemistry, wanting to discover the kinds of gases they emit when they are heated and explode," Roth said in a prepared statement. "We also build smaller prototype batteries that, once we get the chemistry right, may eventually be built full size to go into vehicles."

On a positive note, many of the latest lithium-ion batteries sold for power tools are actually quite resilient, he noted, and can withstand adverse conditions better than many other types of batteries.

As part of its effort to get its first cars out of the door, Tesla Motors is putting its battery business on ice for a bit.

(Credit: Michael Kanellos/CNET Networks)

The electric car company back in January said it was going to sell its battery pack--composed of thousands of lithium-ion battery cells--to third party manufacturers. Interim CEO Michael Marks, however, made the decision to suspend the program in September when he also decided to push out the release of the car and scale back production a bit. Although a few Tesla Roadsters may come out this year, the bulk of the first cars will come out next year. Fifty are due in the first quarter. The delays in the battery program, however, were not flagged then.

Tesla's first and so far only announced customer was going to be Think Global, which is trying to come out with an electric town car.

"We delayed the program with Think until we had roadsters on the road," said Darryl Siry, vice president of sales and marketing at Tesla.

As a result, Think has been lining up alternative battery suppliers. A deal with EnerDel was announced yesterday. EnerDel will be the "supplier of choice" for Think.

It is unclear if the switch in battery providers will delay Think's car, but it could. It's a major change. In September, the company told The Norway Post that it wanted to get the initial cars out in November. Think has made cars with other types of batteries--the company grew out of a dying electric car project from Ford. EnerDel won't deliver prototypes until next March and preproduction batteries until July 2008. Still, Think is not aiming to get large numbers out of the factory at first anyway. The company in July, a few months before Tesla changed management, said it only planned to start producing 250 cars a month by mid-2008.

On a happier note for Tesla, it has also started to let customers who have put down deposits on the $98,000 Tesla Roadster take test drives with the latest prototype. They are doing 12 a week and many of the drivers are posting blogs about the experience (see link above). The test drives are taking place in the Skyline Drive and Highway 84 area. You know, the Alice's Restaurant intersection in the Bay Area.

Despite a few nitpicks here and there, the reviews are all fairly positive. (I've ridden in one and they are a lot of fun, particularly the subtle "whoosh" sound the electric engine makes.)

"I've certainly faced some raised eyebrows at my decision to write a check for $100,000 to purchase a car I've never driven, so if nothing else my thrilling test drive of VP10 was worth it just to explain that I have been behind the wheel, and come away impressed," wrote Josh Hannah.

Hannah, though, did get passed by a Subaru Roadster. He wanted to be cautious.

No entries yet from Sergey, Larry, George Clooney or San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom yet, who have all allegedly put down deposits.

General Motors may lease the battery packs for its Chevy Volt electric car to make it more affordable, according to a news report.

The Volt is unveiled at the 2007 Detroit auto show.

(Credit: CNET Networks)

GM's electric car will take lithium-ion batteries which are known to be expensive and have a limited lifespan compared with the life of a car.

Bob Lutz, GM's global product chief, has said that the company hopes to make the car available in the $30,000 price range.

While GM has several leading battery technology developers and manufacturers onboard in its effort to build an affordable, long-range rechargeable battery for the car, critics have pointed out that the price point could be a challenge given the technology needed to go into it.

To achieve that price point, GM may rent the battery packs needed to run the Chevy Volt, The Financial Times has reported.

GM announced in early August that the company will be ready to test the Chevy Volt in spring 2008 and is still on track for a late 2010 sales availability.

Altair Nanotechnologies, which specializes in lithium ion batteries, said Monday that it will work with investor AES to develop home energy storage systems that can hold more than 500 kilowatts of energy.

AES, a power company, invested $3 million in Altair earlier this year.

A lithium ion battery from Altair.

(Credit: Altair)

Home storage is one of the holy grails of the clean technology field. With a big battery in the closet, the energy harvested from solar panels on the roof could be used by a homeowner at night. Home storage also gives utility owners breathing room. Get enough batteries out there and the risk of a brownout goes down.

It can even help utilities put off erecting additional power plants. PG&E says that plug-in hybrids could serve as home energy storage units.

Start-up GridPoint has emerged as an early leader in the field, but it's still relatively small. More companies will jump in.

Altair is trying to play in lots of markets. It also makes lithium ion batteries for plug-in hybrids and claims its batteries can recharge rapidly, a big sticking point for electric cars. Altair also says the batteries are safer than traditional lithium ion batteries.

So far, however, Altair is not producing massive numbers of batteries. At clean tech conferences, the name comes up a lot. But the question everyone asks is, if the technology is so good, how come the company isn't bigger?

Chevy Volt: charging ahead?

(Credit: CNET Networks)

When GM unveiled the Chevy Volt at this year's Detroit auto show, it admitted that the electric-powered required a technological breakthrough in battery development for the concept to become a reality. Skeptics suggested that the unveiling was little more than pie in the sky or PR hoopla intended to paint the General in more a more non-electric-car-killing light.

This week, however, GM has gone some way to dispelling that skepticism by awarding contracts to two firms with credentials in the lithium ion battery and automotive industries to come up with a solution to the Volt's power requirements. Compact Power, a subsidiary of LG Chem, and Continental Automotive Systems, a division of Continental A.G, have been tasked with providing lithium batteries for GM's E-Flex range-extender system, the drive train behind the Chevy Volt.

The E-Flex system works by using large lithium ion batteries (charged primarily via a 110-volt AC outlet) to store electricity, which powers the car's electric motor. When the batteries run down, a small onboard internal combustion engine is used to generate more electricity to extend the car's range. To date, however, lithium ion batteries have not been able to meet the power, weight, and durability requirements of such an application. The contracts are not a confirmation that the Volt will be put into production, rather "an opportunity to deeply understand the differing battery technologies before making a production decision," according the GM press release. Still, it's a sign that the Volt might avoid the same fate as GM's EV-1 in the electric-car graveyard.

A Mitsubishi Lancer Evo with in-wheel electric motors.

(Credit: CNET Networks)

In an indication that Mitsubishi is serious about building a production electric car, sooner rather than later, it entered into a joint venture with Japanese battery maker GS Yuasa to make large lithium-ion batteries. We've seen Mitsubishi's MIEV technology on cars at the 2005 Tokyo Motor Show and the 2006 Detroit Motor Show, and it's pretty cool. Mitsubishi developed in-wheel electric motors that can be used in all four wheels of a car. The result is a very flexible all-wheel-drive car where torque can be finely tuned for each wheel, depending on the current driving conditions. Mitsubishi has already made a name for itself in World Rally Championship races with its all-wheel-drive Lancer Evo, so the company is no stranger to high-performance drive systems.

New production lines for the large lithium-ion batteries should be up-and-running by 2009, just in time for Mitsubishi's promised 2010 launch of an electric car. There are, of course, no details yet about range or what sort of electric cars Mitsubishi will produce. And we wonder if WRC races will be nearly as exciting without the growl of high-revving engines.

A123 Systems, the lithium ion battery maker that is working with General Motors and other big wigs, has reportedly bought Hymotion, a company that specializes in converting regular hybrids into plug-ins.

The possible deal was reported by the Web site Clean Break. The companies have not commented, but sources in the plug-in industry say a deal appears to be in the works. If it goes through, it could make retrofitting hybrids into plug-ins cheaper and easier.

Today it costs about $10,000 or more to turn a regular Prius into a plug-in. Plug-ins can be charged through a wall socket and get 100 miles a gallon. At the current prices, it's not an economical choice, according to, among others, Felix Kramer of CalCars, which advocates plug-ins. Going the plug-in route will cut down on greenhouse gas emissions, but an owner would have to drive the car a tens of thousands of miles before the cost of the batteries equaled the gas you would have used.

Only a few small companies offer plug-in conversion services at present, but GM and other car companies are expected to start producing plug-ins at the factory in the coming years. To date, most have been scared away by the additional cost of putting in more batteries. Apparent demand among customers, however, has begun to prompt GM, Nissan and others to get into the market.

A123 also works with major car manufacturers on plug-in hybrids with Cobasys, which comes up with systems for integrating extra lithium ion batteries into plug-in hybrids. (Chevron Ventures is an investor in Cobasys.)