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Posts tagged lithium ion batteries
Report: Toyota upping lithium-ion battery production 6x for introduction to Prius family
May 20th
There are already lithium-ion batteries in some Toyota vehicles (the Prius Plug-in Hybrid, the RAV4 EV and the European Prius+, for example), but the company’s standard bearer – the non-plug Prius hybrid – still relies on nickel metal hydride (NiMH) cells. But, the future belongs to li-ion, and that’s why Toyota will soon increase its production of the higher-energy-density batteries sixfold with an eye to putting them into the Prius at an unspecified point in the future, according to the Nikkei.
The plan, the Nikkei says, is for Toyota and production partner Panasonic to build a new production line that will be able to make 200,000 li-ion batteries a year (why does that number sound so familiar?). The companies will spend about 20 billion yen (US $194 million) on the project. There’s no way Toyota can put li-ion cells in all of its hybrids from that one line, though, since the company sells over a million hybrids a year.
Lithium-ion batteries are smaller, lighter and more energy dense than NiMH ones, but they’re also more expensive. They are in widespread use in plug-in electric vehicles from a variety of auto manufacturers. Toyota is also working on future battery technologies, like solid state packs.
Toyota upping lithium-ion battery production 6x for introduction to Prius family originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Mon, 20 May 2013 10:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Japan clears 787s for takeoff pending FAA-approved battery fix
Apr 26th
Japan’s transport minster, Akihiro Ohta, announced today that the country’s airliners can resume flying grounded Boeing 787 Dreamliners once a newly approved battery system is installed. “We have reached a conclusion that there is no problem with the judgment by the FAA,” Ohta told the Associated Press. Back in January two separate fires caused by the 787′s lithium ion batteries led to the FAA temporarily grounding all Dreamliners. Japan’s decision comes shortly after Boeing’s CEO, Jim McNerney, stated during the company’s recent fiscal conference call that he expected all 50 aircraft to be fixed by the middle of May. Japanese airline officials are forecasting a slightly longer timeline, with the country’s 787s returning to the skies around June and test flights scheduled to begin on April 28th.
Filed under: Transportation
Via: The Verge
Source: Associated Press
Stock gain, focus on earnings
Apr 22nd
LONDON (Reuters) – Stock futures pointed to a higher open on Wall Street on Monday, with futures for the S&P 500, the Dow Jones and the Nasdaq 100 rising 0.3 to 0.5 percent. Boeing Co on Monday began installing reinforced lithium ion batteries on five grounded 787 jets owned by launch customer All Nippon Airways , starting a process that should make the first commercial Dreamliners ready to fly again in about a week. Automation technology group ABB is to buy renewable energy firm Power-One Inc for around $1 billion to step up its presence in the growing solar inverters market. …
Boeing begins fixing Dreamliners
Apr 21st
TOKYO (Reuters) – Boeing Co on Monday began installing reinforced lithium ion batteries on five grounded 787 jets owned by launch customer All Nippon Airways , starting a process that should make the first commercial Dreamliners ready to fly again in about a week. Teams of Boeing engineers are working on the ANA jets at four airports in Japan, including Tokyo's Haneda and Narita hubs, Ryosei Nomura, a spokesman for the carrier said. …
Official: Zap figures why not throw battery swap into upcoming E380 electric SUV
Apr 3rd
Filed under: Emerging Technologies, EV/Plug-in, Zap, China
Zap Jonway is trying a lot of different angles in its 380 SUV lineup. Not only can you buy the A380 SUV CNG hybrid version with extended range, now you can swap out batteries in the upcoming E380 SUV battery electric version, as well. And get this – you don’t even have to do the battery swapping yourself. A robot arm takes care of it for you.
Zap Jonway, based in Santa Rosa, CA, made an agreement to work with the China National Grid to set up battery swap stations in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province. The Battery Swap Version was designed to work with the robotic system as specified by China National Grid (C-NG), which is the state-sponsored electric utility. The battery packs have been standardized to fit the robotic arm and also the recharging cabinets in the government-funded charging stations being deployed by C-NG.
The utility has launched extensive programs in selected provinces to support fast battery swapping. The battery swap usually takes no longer than six minutes to complete. It’s not entirely clear, but you can sort of see the battery being taken out (or being put in) in the photo above.
To support electric vehicle adoption, the utility is promoting the sale of EVs by not charging for lithium ion batteries, since they are leased by C-NG or an authorized funding partner. It’s a business model that been adopted by taxis in Hangzhou, and by a few leasing companies that are working in partnership with C-NG. The other main global proponent of battery swapping, Better Place, does not appear to have had anything to do with the Zap project.
Continue reading Zap figures why not throw battery swap into upcoming E380 electric SUV
Zap figures why not throw battery swap into upcoming E380 electric SUV originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Wed, 03 Apr 2013 16:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Boeing sets initial 787 check flight, NTSB plans forum
Mar 25th
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Boeing Co said it plans a two-hour flight of a company-owned 787 airliner on Monday, to be followed by ground and flight certification tests of proposed changes to the 787's lithium ion batteries in coming days. Monday's flight would be used to validate that all systems on the new airliner – which has been grounded since mid-January after battery failures on two separate aircraft – are working as designed, said Boeing spokesman Marc Birtel. Boeing plans to use Line Number 86, which was built for LOT Polish Airlines. …
Boeing says proposed fix would eliminate fire risk on 787
Mar 14th
By Tim Kelly and Mari Saito TOKYO (Reuters) – Boeing Co said its proposed fix for problems relating to the lithium-ion batteries on its 787 Dreamliner would eliminate the risk of fire, as the company seeks to reassure regulators and the public about the jet's safety and get it flying again. The aircraft maker said at a briefing in Tokyo on Friday that it would encase the 787 jet's lithium-ion batteries in stainless steel cases, and provide the power pack with extra insulation, spacers and heat-resistant sleeving to prevent overheating. …
Boeing, battery maker at odds over 787 fix: WSJ
Feb 27th
SAN FRANCISCO/TOKYO (Reuters) – Boeing Co and the Japanese firm that makes lithium-ion batteries for the 787 Dreamliner disagree about what should be included in a package of measures aimed at getting the airliner back in the air, the Wall Street Journal reported. But Boeing Commercial Airplanes CEO Ray Conner told reporters in Tokyo that there was no dispute with GS Yuasa Corp about the proposed solution, adding the planemaker has "a great partnership" with the Kyoto-based battery maker. …
Stretchable, serpentine lithium-ion battery works at three times its usual size
Feb 27th
While we’ve seen more than a few flexible batteries in our day, they’re not usually that great at withstanding tugs and pulls. A team-up between Northwestern University and the University of Illinois could give lithium-ion batteries that extreme elasticity with few of the drawbacks you’d expect. To make a stretchable battery that still maintains a typical density, researchers built electrode interconnects from serpentine metal wires that have even more wavy wires inside; the wires don’t require much space in normal use, but will unfurl in an ordered sequence as they’re pulled to their limits. The result is a prototype battery that can expand to three times its normal size, but can still last for eight to nine hours. It could also charge wirelessly, and thus would be wearable under the skin as well as over — imagine fully powered implants where an external battery is impractical or unsightly. There’s no word yet on whether there will be refined versions coming to real-world products, but we hope any developments arrive quickly enough to give stretchable electronics a viable power source.
Filed under: Wearables, Science, Alt
Via: ScienceDaily
Source: Nature
Boeing proposes full 787 battery fix to FAA: sources
Feb 22nd
WASHINGTON/SEATTLE (Reuters) – Boeing Co on Friday gave U.S. aviation regulators its plan to fix the volatile battery aboard its new 787 Dreamliner, even though investigators have not yet determined what caused the batteries to overheat on two planes last month. Boeing did not propose abandoning the lithium-ion batteries and is not working on a backup or longer-term fix for the problem that has grounded its entire fleet of 50 Dreamliners for nearly five weeks, three sources familiar with the plan said. The company and the U.S. …
