News

Hitachi & Superlattice Power Announce Lithium-Ion Battery Developments

April 06, 2010 by Jeff Shepard

In news that could benefit users of laptops and electric vehicles (EVs), Hitachi Ltd. announced that it has developed a method to double the lifespan of its lithium-ion batteries to more than 10 years.

The batteries are expected to first be used for industrial applications such as storing energy from wind or solar power storage, but could eventually find their way into EVs. The company has yet to reveal when the batteries will enter mass production.

Likewise, Superlattice Power, Inc. announced that it has completed the design of a fast charge lithium ion battery pack in order to qualify the company for EV Innovations Inc.’s LiV™ series electric vehicles.

Superlattice is developing lithium ion batteries for electric as well as hybrid vehicles. Working with EV Innovations, Superlattice has developed a robust lithium ion battery pack system which is tested in more than 10 vehicles for nearly 2000 miles each. However, the battery packs used in these vehicles are designed for charging rates which are lower than 0.5C. The new design developed at Superlattice is capable of handling more than 2.5C rates which means the battery pack can be charged to 80% capacity in less than 30 minutes.