Wednesday, September 24, 2008
2008 R&D 100 Winner
The popularity of hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) is increasing dramatically across the world, but market growth has been impeded primarily by the high cost of nickel-metal hydride (Ni-MH) batteries used to power them. However, researchers at Argonne National Laboratory, Ill., and EnerDel, Indiannapolis, Ind., have removed this remaining barrier to consumer acceptance of HEVs with the EnerDel/Argonne Advanced High-Power Battery for Hybrid Electric Vehicles, a highly reliable and extremely safe battery that is lighter in weight, more compact, more powerful, and longer lasting than the Ni-MH batteries found in today’s HEVs and competing lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries. The battery is expected to meet the U.S. Advanced Battery Consortium’s $500 manufacturing price criterion for a 25-kW battery, which will enable consumers to receive an immediate payback in gas-cost savings rather than having to wait seven years for the savings to surpass the premium placed on HEVs.
In addition, the EnerDel/Argonne battery does not use graphite as the anode material, which has been the cause for concerns about the safety of other Li-ion batteries. Instead, the researchers developed a new form of nano-phase lithium titanate (LTO) to replace the graphite. They also developed a new way of making nano-phased LTO that will allow for easier industrial process as well as provide a high packing density that can increase the battery’s energy density and provide the power needed for vehicle acceleration and regenerative charging of HEVs.
Technology
Battery for hybrid electric vehicles
Developers
Argonne National Laboratory
EnerDel
