Energy Storage

A123 Systems LLC, a developer and manufacturer of advanced lithium-ion batteries and systems, has announced its completion of a transaction to acquire certain intellectual property and technical staff of Leyden Energy.

Researchers are turning to extremely tiny tubes and rods to boost power and durability in lithium-ion batteries, the energy sources for cell phones, laptops, and electric vehicles. If successful, the batteries will last longer and perform better, leading to a cost advantage for electric vehicles.

Ford Motor Company and Samsung SDI, an affiliate of Samsung Group, have announced research on different levels of hybrid technology that could one day be produced in high volume on non-hybrid vehicles for greater fuel savings.

Paper Battery Company, developer of an innovative energy storage and enhancement technology for consumer electronics and other applications, has announced the closing of a $3.0M Series A private investment round.

The market for electric vehicle inverters, both hybrid and pure electric, will grow from around $2.8 billion in 2013 to an estimated $4.2 billion in 2023 as discussed in the IDTechEx report, "Power Electronics for Electric Vehicles 2013-2023: Forecasts, Technologies, Players."

A lithium-based battery has a major disadvantage: it's highly flammable, and when it overheats, it can burst into flames. For years, scientists have searched for safer battery materials that still have the same advantages as lithium.

Enfucell was founded in June 2002 after a decade of research on power sources for low power applications at the Automation Laboratory of The Helsinki University of Technology. It is based in Finland. Their main product is a flexible and thin battery made of low-cost industrial environmentally-friendly materials that are disposable with other household waste. The main target t markets are in RFID/logistics, cosmetics, and medical industry.

BrightVolt, previously know as Solicore, is a single-use solid-state thin film lithium polymer battery company located in Lakeland, Florida. Their main product is Flexion and the main target markets are smart cards and medical devices.

IDTechEx are hosting a free webinar on Wednesday 25th June.

The new thousand mile EV range extending Aluminum-Air Battery was demonstrated in Montreal last week. Israeli battery developer Phinergy and aluminium supplier Alcoa are collaborating on new materials, processes and components to commercialize the battery.

Electric vehicles, meaning free running vehicles with electric drive and carrying their own electricity storage are one business, whether sea, land or airborne. The components and even the complete electric drive trains are increasingly made by companies not restricting themselves to one of these applications. Despite our definition of marine electric vehicles omitting the traditional large diesel-electric and nuclear-electric ships and submarines, the marine EV sector is second only to the land sector in market value, aircraft being some way behind as yet.

Whip together an industrial waste product and a bit of plastic and you might have the recipe for the next revolution in battery technology.

As the IDTechEx report, "Electric Aircraft 2014-2024 Trends, Projects, Forecasts" explains, manned electric aircraft serve the need for reduced noise, air and ground pollution and reduced global warming.

CSR Zhuzhou, China, has unveiled what it claims is the world's first 100% supercapacitor-powered low-floor tram.

IDTechEx finds that the global sale of hybrid and pure electric cars will triple to $178.9 billion in 2024 as they are transformed in most respects.

Imagine being able to carry all the juice you needed to power your MP3 player, smartphone and electric car in the fabric of your jacket? Sounds like science fiction, but it may become a reality thanks to breakthrough technology.

So far electrical cables are used only to transmit electricity. However, nanotechnology scientist and Professor Jayan Thomas and his Ph.D. student Zenan Yu have developed a way to both transmit and store electricity in a single lightweight copper wire.

Batteries do not age gracefully. The lithium ions that power portable electronics cause lingering structural damage with each cycle of charge and discharge, making devices from smartphones to tablets tick toward zero faster and faster over time.

Consider three supercapacitor riddles as we reveal how the supercapacitor industry is in good health in 2014 with added potential. What takes a lot of space and no space? What has a rival that is a partner? What do fuel cells need next?

It is now commonplace for supercapacitors to be placed across lithium-ion batteries. Indeed, in some applications, the battery is now omitted and the supercapacitor does the job on its own as with some hybrid and pure electric bus traction systems and power tools.