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While the traditional fossil fuel vehicle is pretty much a dead weight when it’s not in use, electric cars offer promise of increased utility. Automakers have been on a roll finding – and implementing – novel ways of integrating the electric car into our lives. Ford’s foray into sustainable energy partnership with SunPower is one just positive step forward. On August 2nd, Nissan took a similarly bold step forward in increasing the utility of electric cars in our lives with the introduction of the “Leaf to Home” system.

The process uses the Leaf’s 24kWh (killowatt hour) battery to power a house. Through the system, the Leaf battery connects to the home power distribution panel using a special connector linked to the Leaf’s standard charging port. The power control system is a two way design that can be used to charge the Leaf conventionally, but in the advent of a brown or blackout, the Leaf’s battery returns electricity to the home. Designed for Japanese homes, which use an average of 12kWh of electricity a day, the Leaf to Home system would barely supply an energy voracious American home for a day (typical American homes suck down 30kWh of juice daily).

Nissan is working with commercial partners to produce the system, and expect production by the end of the year. With the recent disruption in electricity production in Japan as a result of the Tohuku Earthquake, and ensuing shutting down of nuclear power stations, Japanese households have been subjected to brownouts and blackouts with increasing frequency. Nissan hopes the Leaf to Home system can help alleviate the effect of these occurrences. Nissan also believes this two way system could also be beneficial in reducing overall household electricity consumption, providing energy back to the grid during peak demand during the day (if the car isn’t being used) and recharging the battery at night when demand is low. In conjunction with sustainable energy production methods such as solar, it could reduce a household’s demand to zero in certain circumstances.

Hopefully other manufacturers take heed of Nissan’s system and partner with other household energy providers to bring out more systems like this. By making the car become an integral part of the energy usage composition of a home, households can take a major step forward in reducing their energy consumption. Considering the number of households with cars, the impact could be significant. The downside to this system is how starkly consumptive American households are with electricity. Reducing our home consumption, adding renewable energy sources such as solar – and cleverly making our vehicles do more work than just burn energy could radically reshape domestic energy concerns. Of course the installation and construction of these systems means more jobs too. In this difficult economic climate, that’s something everyone can agree on.

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Perhaps the single greatest barrier to widespread adoption of plug-in automobiles is the time it takes to charge them.  We have looked into charging times in the past, and even with the most advanced infrastructure in place at charging stations, you are still looking at one hour or more to fully recharge your battery.  The automobile industry (and investors), however, have not been deterred, and many have pointed to a trend in developing lower-cost, more efficient rechargeable batteries.  Lately, it seems, their optimism has been warranted.

Researchers from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign have built a prototype battery that  can conceivably reduce charge times down to mere minutes.

Lithium-ion batteries, like all batteries, work by connecting two electrodes through an electrically conductive material — called an electrolyte.   When that battery is charging and discharging, negatively-charged electrons flow between each electrode while positively-charged ions flow to balance out the charges.  As the image to the right shows, lithium has recently become the material of choice due to the amount of energy it can store relative to its weight.  Nickel-metal hydride batteries are still in use, however, and come at a cheaper cost.

The breakthrough in this instance comes from increasing the surface area between the electrodes and the electrolyte: a critical factor in determining the recharging rate.  At the same time, they were able to maintain a large battery volume, a key attribute to storing maximum energy.  The researchers were able to accomplish this by starting off with a material made up of closely packed polystyrene spheres, each about one-millionth of a meter in diameter.  The gaps between the spheres were filled with nickel through a process called electrodeposition.  The porosity of this nickel-layer could be increased using electropolishing, creating a framework conducive for placing electric cathodes.

Both a nickel-metal hydride and a lithium-ion battery were created using this material, and in both cases the area of contact between the nickel, the electrolyte, and the cathodes were greatly increased.   The researchers claimed that they were able to re-charge a lithium-ion battery to 90% capacity in two minutes!  Furthermore, they say the increase in production costs to manufacture such a battery should only be 20-30% higher than current techniques, once these batteries start becoming mass produced.

The Future?

So, will these new batteries revolutionize plug-in cars?  The answer is not so simple.  The huge current that is necessary to charge a battery so quickly would require significant upgrades to a car’s electrics as well as to charging stations.  It is also uncertain whether these faster-charging batteries affect battery life.  These concerns aside, however, this could be a major step in the right direction.  Like we mentioned earlier, charge-times are a major barrier to customer adoption of plug-ins.   Charging overnight is fine — but wasting significant time at a charging station is most likely a deal-breaker.  If advances in battery technology such as this one shatter that barrier, the positives of electric cars might finally outweigh the negatives… which would indeed create a revolution.

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This year, the Nissan Leaf and the Ford Focus Electric will hit showroom floors across America, becoming the first mass-marketed all electric cars of the century. But they were not the first to be invented – the technology behind electric vehicles is actually much, much older than many people realize.

Electric Motors

The mid nineteenth century saw a steep rise in the study of electricity, with crude electric motors developed as early as 1828 by Hungarian Physicist Anyos Jedlik. His contemporaries with similar inventions included the British William Sturgeon and Americans Emily and Thomas Davenport. At the time, trains were widely used, and most electric vehicle concepts came in the form of passenger trains that ran on electrified rails. An electrified rail was needed, because batteries were not yet rechargeable. The AC electric motor most commonly used today was invented by the visionary Nikola Tesla in 1888. Today, a small electric car firm in California is named after him.

Batteries

In 1859, French inventor Gaston Plante produced the first rechargeable, lead-acid battery by taking two thin sheets of lead, rolling them up with a sheet of linen, and submerging them in a glass jar of acid. Another French inventor, Camille Alphonse Faure, developed a more reliable model in 1881, and this was widely used in electric cars of the day.

Europe

England and France were quickest to embrace electric car technology. In 1867, Austrian inventor Franz Kravogl unveiled an electric motorcycle at the World Exposition in Paris. Paris also saw the debut of French inventor Gustave Trouve’s three-wheeled electric automobile at the 1881 International Exhibition of Electricity. By the end of the century, European electrics were the fastest vehicles on the planet. In 1899, engineer Camille Jenatzy set a new land speed record of sixty-five miles an hour in his rocket-shaped electric car, Jamais Contente. Around this time, Ferdinand Porsche developed a record-setting electric automobile with all-wheel drive. Each wheel was powered by an individual electric motor. Ironically, this is how many electric and hybrid concepts are designed today.

America

The aforementioned American scientists Emily and Thomas Davenport were the first in putting an electric motor into a car, but their automotive and industrial motors required non-rechargeable batteries at the time, and the Davenports went bankrupt. In 1891, William Morrison developed an electric, six-seat wagon. It’s top speed? Fourteen miles an hour. Electric firms like Columbia and Edison took up electric car projects in the following years. Edison was a close friend of Henry Ford, and Ford promised an Edison powered electric vehicle, but the project lost momentum when a dispute over battery use arose.

Worldwide, electric car projects have lain mostly dormant for the better part of a century. This may be the year they return in force.

Miles Walker is a freelance writer and blogger who usually compares car insurance deals over at CarinsuranceComparison.Org.

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Hitachi, Japan’s largest industrial electronics manufacturer, is devoting significant resources to capture the global car battery market.   Already, they are able to boast of the 100,000 hybrid car order that GM has placed for its lithium-ion batteries.  But, of course, that is not enough.   The Tokyo-based corporation is ramping up its capacity in order to accommodate the needs of 700,000 electric vehicles a year, a gain of 600%.

The Nikkei Business Daily has estimated the expansion costs at between $200 and $300 million.   The completion date would be somewhere around 2015, a time when many more plug-in models are set to hit the road.  The announcement is probably designed to instill confidence in electric-car manufacturers that Hitachi is taking its battery division seriously and will be ready and able to meet future demand.

The company plans on producing two new types of lithium-ion batteries for “next-generation” hybrid vehicles.   The design changes will reflect the industry goal of increased power storage with a reduction in weight and size.   And with many adept battery manufacturers all clamoring for the reputation of providing high quality at a discounted price, the increased production is sure to provide Hitachi with the logistical and engineering experience necessary to emerge as a leader.

Hitachi’s other clients for lithium-ion batteries include Isuzu Motors and Mitsubishi.   They are targeting sales of $1.04 billion by the year 2015 — when global sales of electric-car batteries are expected to surpass $6 billion, according to Nikkei.

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The lithium-ion battery cell has emerged as a clear favorite with the plethora of car manufacturers who are announcing their electric ambitions. And as this demand rises, suppliers of battery technology are in a race of their own to provide high-quality, low-cost lithium-ion solutions. Several Asian firms have established dominant footholds in the industry, winning contracts with major auto companies, and they offer a formidable challenge to newer entrants:

South Korea’s LG Chem was the supplier chosen by GM to manufacturer batteries for the upcoming Volt plug-in. The newly formed CODA Automotive (based in California) has a deal in place with China’s Lishen Battery Co., and the popular (in China) BYD line of electric automobiles runs on batteries that are produced by their parent company, BYD Company Limited. Other notable Asian players include Panasonic, NEC and Sanyo Electric, all based in Japan. These companies have established reputations for reliability and their technology is tried and tested.

The Challengers

On the other side of the globe, there is a relentless drive to catch up and surpass. Helping the effort is the $2.4 billion U.S. stimulus program, a large portion of which is slotted for battery development. Ener1, a start-up from Indiana, has recently applied for a $480 million government loan in order to expand their facilities and leverage their proprietary battery technology. The company is already supplying Think Automotive, a Norwegian manufacturer, and they are in preliminary stages of agreements with the Californian carmaker Fisker. What separates their product from competitors includes the chemical coating that they apply to the lithium strips, allowing them to customize the battery performance for various needs, as well as the stacked-design of their battery cells, which their CEO refers to as a “breakthrough”.

Another large American technology company aiming to dominate the market is A123 Systems. They have an edge in that they already have battery plants in Asia and relationships amongst the supply-chain. Now, there are talks of adding new facilities to the U.S. in order to take advantage of tax incentives and geographic benefits. Batteries, which are notoriously heavy, can be expensive to ship, so moving their production close to one’s customers can help lower costs.

The Prize

Numerous smaller firms and research arms across the globe are also in the race. The allure of securing just one contract with a major electric car maker is enough for investors and engineers to pour in vast sums of money, time, and experience.

Market dynamics and product technology make for a complicated and unpredictable future. In order to sell, batteries must deliver on multiple fronts that include price, reliability, range, weight, customization, and overall life. Large auto companies also want a supplier that can deliver on large orders with few defects.

While a true battery breakthrough has not yet occurred, falling prices is an important enough factor to keep demand flowing. Whosoever captures a significant chunk of that demand will earn riches, as well as prestige.

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G

• The new Global Battery Systems Lab is located at the Warren Technical Center campus on the outskirts of Detroit. According to information coming from the company, it cost GM $25 million to construct, takes up 33,000 square feet, and employs over 1,000 engineers. The facility will operate 42 thermal chambers and 160 test channels that will expose batteries to real-world driving conditions and test the limits of their design and capacity. Included in the testing are 32 battery “cyclers” that will continuously charge and deplete battery cells for further efficiency studies. The battery headquarters will most likely be utilized by GM and its suppliers, LG Chem and Compact Power, to perfect the sort of lithium-ion batteries in the upcoming Volt and its successors.

While this new facility sounds like a definite step in the right direction to improve the technology and compete with Chinese battery heavyweights, some of the numbers don’t seem to add up. Firstly, $25 million is a very small number for a state-of-the art lab. To put it in perspective, Apple recently announced that it would be spending $1 billion on a server farm. Second, employing a thousand engineers would be very expensive – certainly exceeding the price tag that was given – and appears to be an excessive concentration in one facility. Additionally, the start date of construction was only last August and there is no word yet if more money is needed to operate and expand the center.

In the meantime, GM has plans to create a battery-focused engineering curriculum at the University of Michigan, around which they plan to construct another battery lab.

Amidst these developments, the speculation that the Volt program might be discontinued is probably going to quiet down, perhaps for good.

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The startup entity behind this model is called Better Place, and the man at the helm is Shai Agassi.    Agassi’s ambitious propsal includes installing a network of charging stations where customers can swap the old batteries from their cars with new batteries.  Sophisticated software will allow the company to determine when electricity prices are at their lowest, at which point the old batteries will be recharged.  At peak hours when demand is high, they will be able to sell excess power back into the grid.  The third party to this electricity arbitrage will be the buyer, who according to Better Place will benefit from the low cost of electricity when compared with gasoline.   Additionally, the waiting time to switch batteries will be minimal, as Better Place has engineered a robot capable of performing the task in under a minute.

The whole scheme, and especially the prospect of having a hassle-free battery swap, will require massive standardization.  This is where Better Place’s partners come into play.  Agassi has formed an agreement with Renault-Nissan, who will be spending about $600 million to build electric versions of its existing vehicles.   The expected deployment date is 2011, and in the meantime Better Place, along with several energy companies, will be constructing the electric infrastructure.   Stations are already spring up in Japan and Israel, and investors plan on raising $1 billion (Australian) to construct a similar network in Australia.

We are so used to thinking of our cars as necessary capital expenditures with maintenance costs and a fixed life.  Our mobile phones, on the other hand, are largely subsidized by telecom companies who offer contracts or pay-as-you-go deals.   In the latter scenario, more of the driver’s costs are deferred, and they vary according to his or her needs.

This business model, however, does seem to have its drawbacks.  Consumers will have to adopt the mindset of their car becoming a standarized accessory, rather than a symbol of self-expression.  Additionally, the prospect of having to visit a charging station each time you want to “refuel” is daunting and might be hard to accept — Designing the vehicles with the ability to plug-in at home will go a long way to solving this.   Another problem is basing the pricing model off the distance that the driver travels:  this might create an incentive for customers to “steal” power from their batteries, transferring it out to another battery perhaps, and simply swapping at a station for free.  However, if Better Place were to switch to pricing for the charge in their batteries instead of mileage, it would make it difficult to implement charge-at-home functionality (unless a tamper-proof “meter” were placed in the car).  And finally, the cost of building the infrastructure will be extremely high, yet without plenty of swapping stations available, it would be hard for a driver to justify signing up.

Mr. Agassi and his company already have a lot of believers despite the large hurdles facing them.  Whether his model succeeds or fails, it will have lasting implications for the auto industry.   We will continue to keep an eye out here for the latest related developments.

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