Under the agreement, the two companies agreed on a collaborative research in the field of next-generation lithium-ion battery technologies. Furthermore, they have agreed to identify and discuss other possible collaborative projects.

In addition, Toyota Motor Europe, Toyota’s European subsidiary, and BMW Group have entered into a contract under which BMW Group is to supply 1.6 liter and 2.0 liter diesel engines to TME starting in 2014. The engines will be installed in certain Toyota-produced vehicles planned for sale in the European market. Through this agreement, Toyota plans to expand its European lineup and sales of fuel-efficient, low CO2-emission diesel-powered vehicles.

The tie-up in diesel technology would represent a reversal in Toyota’s strategy after it scrapped plans two years ago to develop 1.6-liter diesel engines with Japanese truck maker Isuzu Motors Ltd, in which it owns a 5.9 percent stake.

Marking the announcement, Norbert Reithofer, Chairman of the Board of Management of BMW AG, said: “Toyota is the leading provider of environment-friendly series technology in the volume segment and the BMW Group is the most innovative and sustainable manufacturer of premium automobiles. We are now joining forces to further develop environment-friendly technologies and to expand our innovation leadership in each of our segments. Supplying Toyota with our fuel efficient and dynamic diesel engines represents another important step in the planned expansion of our sales activities for engines and powertrain systems.”

Representing TMC, President Akio Toyoda said: “It is a great joy and a thrill to enter into this mid-to-long-term collaborative relationship with BMW, a company with its own culture and history from its many years of car manufacturing in Europe, and a company that makes cars that are fun to drive. In the spirit of contributing to furthering the development of the auto industry and society, both companies will bring their wide-ranging knowledge – starting with that concerning environmental technologies – to the table and make ever-better cars.

What gives Aluminum-Celmet its ability to be the basis of highly efficient batteries is its extreme porosity – up to 98 percent. When used as a replacement for the aluminum foil anode in a secondary – rechargeable – lithium-ion battery, that porosity allows for the battery to contain a significantly larger amount of the lithium compound that contributes its ions to the electrical flow.

Replacing the aluminum foil with Aluminum-Celmet increases the amount of positive active material per unit area. Sumitomo Electric’s trial calculations indicate that in the case of automotive onboard battery packs, such replacement can triple the capacity of lithium-ion batteries. Alternatively, with no change in capacity, battery volume can be reduced to one-third to two-thirds. These changes afford such benefits as reduced footprint of home-use storage batteries for power generated by solar and other natural sources, as well as by fuel cells.

Sumitomo Electric has already used nickel-based Celmet to create nickel-metal hydride and nickel-cadmium battery cells. The new Aluminum-Celmet material, however, has the advantages of being lighter and having improved electric conductivity and corrosion resistance, properties that make it suitable for secondary lithium-ion batteries.

The company has setup a production factory at Osaka to accelerate the development of the material and to produce the battery-boosting material.

[source: Sumitomo Electric Industries, PureGreenCars.com]

The batteries in Illinois professor Paul Braun’s lab look like any others, but they pack a surprise inside.

Braun’s group developed a three-dimensional nanostructure for battery cathodes that allows for dramatically faster charging and discharging without sacrificing energy storage capacity.

The newly cathode allows extremely fast charging and discharging to the tune of 400C for lithium-ion and 1,000C for NiMH batteries in which, ”C” is the charge (or discharge) rate where 1C equals a charge in one hour. 400C means a full charge in 1/400 of an hour. This means normal lithium-ion batteries could be recharged to 90 percent in just two minutes.

The performance of typical lithium-ion (Li-ion) or nickel metal hydride (NiMH) rechargeable batteries degrades significantly when they are rapidly charged or discharged. Making the active material in the battery a thin film allows for very fast charging and discharging, but reduces the capacity to nearly zero because the active material lacks volume to store energy.

Braun’s group wraps a thin film into three-dimensional structure, achieving both high active volume (high capacity) and large current. They have demonstrated battery electrodes that can charge or discharge in a few seconds, 10 to 100 times faster than equivalent bulk electrodes, yet can perform normally in existing devices.

This kind of performance could lead to phones that charge in seconds or laptops that charge in minutes, as well as high-power lasers and defibrillators that don’t need time to power up before or between pulses.

Braun is particularly optimistic for the batteries’ potential in electric vehicles. Battery life and recharging time are major limitations of electric vehicles. Long-distance road trips can be their own form of start-and-stop driving if the battery only lasts for 100 miles and then requires an hour to recharge.

The group published its results in the March 20 online edition of Nature Nanotechnology.

[source: Illinois University]

The lithium-ion battery cells will be produced in a newly-built production line in Ulsan, South Korea, while the battery packs will be assembled by SB LiMotive’s U.S. subsidiary Cobasys in Ohio, the company said in a statement Sunday.

SB LiMotive, a 50-50 joint venture between Samsung SDI and Germany’s Robert Bosch, was established in 2008 in a drive by the Samsung Group to foster the lucrative battery business, expecting rapid growth in the hybrid electric vehicle market.

Last year, SB LiMotive was named by BMW AG as battery supplier for the German luxury car maker’s upcoming zero-emission Megacity Electric Vehicle, which will be launched in 2013 under a sub-brand of BMW.

The combination of Hitachi’s technological expertise in lithium-ion batteries with the Johnson Control’s solid customer base in the automotive sector is expected to create great benefits for the two companies, according to a spokeswoman for Hitachi.

Hitachi, which has produced 1.2 million lithium-ion automotive battery cells, supplies Japanese truckmaker Isuzu, and plans to supply General Motors.

Johnson Controls is a major automobile battery maker, controlling about 30 percent market share in lead-acid storage batteries.

Demand for lithium-ion batteries is expected to grow sharply in the near future as electric vehicles and smart grid electricity distribution systems become more widespread.

Automakers and electronics companies worldwide are rushing to develop and produce the batteries–often through tie-ups.

Battery maker GS Yasa has joint ventures with Honda and Mitsubishi, which is also working with Toshiba. Automotive Energy Supply Corporation, a joint venture between Nissan and NEC, will produce the lithium-ion batteries for Nissan’s electric vehicle to be introduced in the U.S. and Japan, as well as Nissan’s original hybrid vehicles.

Toyota has a joint venture with Panasonic. Meanwhile, Panasonic is in the process of turning subsidiary Sanyo, a global leader in lithium-ion batteries for consumer electronics, into a wholly owned unit.

Naming a second-life business for recyclable advanced lithium-ion batteries as the “4R Energy” business in October 2009, both companies started a joint study to “Reuse, Resell, Refabricate and Recycle” the lithium ion batteries used in electric cars.

The 4R Energy will be held 51 percent by Nissan and 49 percent by Sumitomo, they said in a statement.

Nissan will launch electric Nissan LEAF in December 2010 in Japan and the United States, followed by the global release in 2012. Meanwhile, in April 2010, Sumitomo launched a new division, the New Business Development & Promotion Division, which is responsible for environmental businesses and is working on developing new approaches to realizing a low-carbon, recycling-based society.

Nissan has an existing joint-venture company with NEC Corporation – Automotive Energy Supply Corporation (AESC) – to mass produce high-performance lithium-ion batteries.

The AES project, located in Johnson City, New York, will help provide a more stable and efficient electrical grid for the state’s high-voltage transmission network.

Traditionally, grid frequency regulation, which is needed to balance power generation and consumption on the grid, is maintained by burning additional fossil fuels at power plants.

The AES project eliminates the need to burn fossil fuels and instead uses battery technology and new software that will provide the same regulation at a lower price.  This advanced frequency regulation capability will allow renewable electricity generation to play a larger role in New York’s transmission network.

The AES technology can help reduce carbon emissions by 70 percent compared to frequency regulation provided by fossil energy suppliers.

The AES project will include advanced lithium-ion battery cells from A123System, Inc., a leading supplier of lithium-ion batteries that provide grid stabilization more efficiently and with less environmental impact than existing resources. The contained battery and related electrical systems are assembled, tested and validated in an A123 manufacturing facility in Hopkinton, MA.

Panasonic, which currently owns 50.5% of Sanyo and 51% of Panasonic Electric Works, said the acquisitions are part of its effort toward becoming the “No. 1 green innovation company in the electronics industry.”
Last year, Panasonic spent $4.6 billion to secure a controlling stake in Sanyo Electric which is among the top lithium-ion battery makers in the world. Panasonic Electric Works makes lighting equipment, sensors and other components.

Panasonic has a joint venture with Toyota Motor Corp. to produce batteries for hybrids and electric vehicles.

Sanyo currently supplies nickel-metal hydride batteries to Honda and Ford for vehicles sold in the North American market and reportedly plans to supply Toyota as well.

Sanyo will also provide its nickel-metal hydride cells for Peugeot 3008 crossover and the Citroen DS5 models which the French carmaker plans to launch in 2011.

The company, which has also agreed on joint lithium-ion battery development with German’s Volkswagen AG, is likely to be expanding partnerships with other automakers.

[source: Panasonic via Pure Green Cars]

The warranty will be transferable at no cost to other vehicle owners and cover all 161 battery components, GM said.

In addition, the warranty also includes the battery’s thermal management system, charging system and electric-drive components.

GM already offers a 100,000 mile, 5 year warranty on the engines and transmissions in all of its other models, so this warranty adds a small degree of greater protection for the Volt’s battery pack and related parts.

The Volt’s gasoline engine, which generates electricity should a driver want to travel beyond 40 miles after charging, will be covered by the standard 5-year, 100,000 mile warranty.

The Chevrolet Volt will go on sale later this year in California, Washington, D.C., Austin, Texas, and around New York City. Additional Volts will go on sale next year in Michigan, New Jersey, Connecticut and the rest of New York and Texas.

GM plans to produce 10,000 Volts by the end of the 2011 calendar year and an additional 30,000 in 2012.

The automaker has provided some additional specifications on the battery pack. Key battery features include:

– Thermal management for durability and reliability: The Volt is the only mass-market electric vehicle with a battery that can be warmed or cooled. The battery is designed to provide reliable operation, when plugged in, at temperatures as low as -13 degrees Fahrenheit (-25 C) and as high as 122 degrees Fahrenheit (+50 C). In cold weather, the battery will be preheated during charging to provide full power capability. In hot weather – the most challenging environment for a battery – the Volt’s battery can be chilled during charging. The Volt’s liquid thermal management system can also be powered during driving by the battery or engine/generator.

– Diagnostics for safety and performance: The Volt’s battery management system continuously monitors the battery real-time for optimum operations.  More than 500 diagnostics run at 10 times per second, keeping track of the Volt’s battery pack; 85 percent of the diagnostics ensure the battery pack is operating safely, while the remaining 15 percent keep track of battery performance and life.

- Cell design and chemistry for performance and efficiency: GM’s selection of a prismatic cell design and LG Chem’s manganese spinel lithium-ion chemistry is designed to provide long life and high power output, with a properly maintained temperature. This enables better vehicle acceleration and increased regenerative braking capability for improved vehicle efficiency.

- Energy management for durability: Fully charging or fully depleting a battery shortens its life. The Volt’s energy management system never fully charges or depletes the battery. The Volt’s battery has top and bottom “buffer zones” to help ensure long life.

The 22 kWh lithium-ion battery for the THINK City EV pack is being supplied by Ener1 subsidiary, Indiana-based EnerDel which owns an equity stake in Think.

The latest generation THINK City is a purpose-built, all-electric car designed for urban environments. It can travel at highway speeds and cover 100 miles (160 kilometers) on a single charge (via any conventional household outlet). It also supports fast charging to 80 percent of capacity in 15 minutes.

The RHINK City EV is the world’s first EV to be granted certification with the European CE conformity mark and EU homologation requirements (M1 certificate). To achieve these exacting standards, the THINK City has successfully completed very thorough testing and validation procedures.

European production of the THINK City is underway in Finland with manufacturing partner Valmet Automotive, which will also be assembling the Fisker Karma starting early next year. Think also plans to add U.S. production of the City EV sometime in 2011 in Elkhart County, Indiana.

First customer deliveries are taking place across Europe in selected key EV markets such as The Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Austria and then the United States later this year.