Honda makes breakthrough with carbon nanotube development

Honda has been working on a new technology that could lead to a breakthrough in vehicle development. Initial research by the firm, joined with scientists at Purdue University and the University of Louisville, has shown that microscopic carbon nanotubes may be capable of distributing electricty quicker and more efficiently.

The nanotubes may also be used to create a material that is at least as light as carbon fiber, but stronger than steel.

Researchers currently grow the carbon nanotubes on metal nanoparticles. The carbon nanotubes form "rolled honeycomb sheets with carbon atoms" at the ends. The initial research has shown that the nanotubes are 100,000 times thinner than strands of human hair. "When these tiny carbon nanotubes exhibit metallic conductivity they possess extraordinary strength compared to steel, higher electrical properties than copper, are as efficient in conducting heat as a diamond and are as light as cotton," according to a press release.

Honda forsees the new technology affecting the production of batteries, cables, fuel cells, and solar cells, which could lead to more efficient vehicles. They also believe the findings could lead to advancements in artificial muscles, robotics, and supercapacitors, to name a few.

"Our goal is not only the creation of new and better technologies and products, but to fulfill Honda's commitment to environment sustainability," wrote Honda Research Institute USA project director Dr. Hideaki Tsuru.

Source: WorldCarFans

Electric vehicles call for redefinition of automobiles

Metal-air battery drawing attention

Q: I'd like to ask about the batteries first.

Hirota: Fuel cell vehicles feature longer driving distances and were expected to be commercialized at an early date. However, the introduction of FC vehicles into the market has been substantially delayed due to some unsolved issues including their high costs.

Hybrid vehicles with nickel-metal hydride (NiMH) batteries have already been commercialized, and electric vehicles incorporating lithium ion (Li-ion) secondary batteries are expected to debut within 2009. Driving distances of electric vehicles are short, though, because the energy density of the batteries is still low.

Li-ion secondary batteries with a higher energy density are being developed so as to improve driving distances of electric vehicles. At the same time, fuel cells and air batteries including metal-air batteries are under development.

NiMH batteries and Li-ion batteries, commonly-used high-performance batteries, use oxidizers for their cathodes and are similar to rocket engines. The batteries have a high instantaneous force (power density) while they are heavy because of the oxidizers and low in energy density. Though some improvements have been made, we are beginning to see technological limits.

On the other hand, metal-air batteries, which use zinc, magnesium, lithium, etc, as fuel, as well as hydrogen-oxygen fuel cells, which oxidize hydrogen and metals by using oxygen in the air, are similar to jet engines. These batteries do not need an oxidizer, one of the materials necessary for redox reaction in batteries, resulting in possible weight reduction.

Airplanes that fly in the atmosphere carry jet engines, not rocket engines. I think automotive engineers have big expectations for metal-air batteries similar to jet engines in this respect.

Based on these perspectives, electric vehicles with zinc-air batteries, etc, are being actively developed in the US, Europe and China.

For commercialization of metal-air batteries, we should utilize technologies for Li-ion batteries and zinc-air batteries as well as air electrode technologies advanced through the development of fuel cells. Japan will continue to lead the world in the development of batteries if we take advantage of our advanced atomic level observation technologies and elementary reaction analysis technologies and if the industry, government and academia join forces on projects, such as the one being promoted by NEDO.

Electronics/Electrochemistry Fusion Expected

Q: Is the development of automotive batteries progressing smoothly?

Hirota: A variety of research institutes and corporations in Japan have been developing batteries. However, to develop batteries appropriate for automotive use, it is necessary to enhance collaboration of battery developers and automobile developers who specialize in machines and electricity.

Though mechatronics, a synergetic combination of mechanical engineering and electronic engineering, has a history of more than 30 years, there were disputes arising from differences in thinking patterns and cultures between machine-oriented engineers and electronics-oriented engineers in development sites at an early stage of its history. Fortunately, as time went by, the two parties came to cooperate with each other.

Batteries are developed by "electrochemistry engineers." The key to open the electric vehicle era lies in "chemtronics," the fusion of electronics and electrochemistry, as well as mechatronics, but we have to wait some time for this fusion to occur.

For example, battery characteristics are provided from manufacturers in the form of charts rather than mathematical models or equivalent circuit models, making it difficult to design charge/discharge systems.

The Japanese battery industry is ranked number one in the world in terms of batteries themselves. So, I believe we have the capability to be the number one in system technologies including the use of batteries. The competitiveness of Japanese automotive manufacturers may decline if they don't see a vehicle and batteries as an integrated system.

Q: What can be done to solve that issues?

Hirota: The ideal way would be that engineers for electronic circuits learn about electrochemistry and those for electrochemistry learn about electronic circuits. But they will have a hard time understanding unfamiliar fields especially when they are busy with their own jobs.

When we look at actual job sites from the perspective of understanding unfamiliar fields, circuit designers don't always understand the principles of semiconductor engineering. But they can fully utilize, for example, power devices.

Semiconductor manufacturers provide equivalent circuit models of power devices, so it is possible to know operating margin, calorific value and changes in characteristics due to temperature increase of power devices by using a circuit simulator. Mechanical engineers can also fully utilize semiconductor devices by using the circuit simulator.

I think equivalent circuit models for batteries should also be created as soon as possible so that electronics engineers and mechanical engineers can handle batteries. Such models are needed not only for batteries but also for various other fields, and I believe they are essential for electric vehicle system integration.

Source: Tech-On!

Japan expects automotive Li-Ion battery costs to halve in 1 year

The New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO), an independent administrative institution in Japan, submitted March 3, 2009, the final draft of the "2008 Roadmap for the Development of Next Generation Automotive Battery Technology."

The draft was approved at the second meeting of the Roadmap Committee on the same day. After some details are corrected, it will be disclosed on NEDO's Website as early as in March 2009.

The roadmap covers the development of secondary batteries used in plug-in hybrid cars and electric cars, which are expected to play main roles as next generation vehicles, and is "based on the most detailed information currently available," according to NEDO. Performances and costs at present as well as those to be attained by 2010, 2015, 2020 and after 2030 are shown as target values.

According to the roadmap, Li-ion secondary batteries will lead the market until around 2030. The roadmap forecasts the development will be focused on two types of batteries, an output density-oriented type intended for plug-in hybrid and hybrid cars, and an energy density-oriented type for electric cars.

NEDO also analyzed battery cost (not a cell but a battery pack) as of March 2009. It estimates that the cost is about ¥200,000/kWh (approx US$2,016/kWh) for both types of batteries. In respect to output density-oriented batteries, the current energy density is 70Wh/kg, and the output density is 1,800W/kg. Meanwhile, for energy density-oriented batteries, the energy density is 100Wh/kg and the output density is 400W/kg.

According to the target values described in the roadmap, the energy density and output density of output density-oriented batteries will be improved to 70Wh/kg and 2,000W/kg, respectively, and their cost will be reduced by half to about ¥100,000/kWh in 2010. In respect to the energy density-oriented batteries, the energy density and output density are expected to improve to 100Wh/kg and 1,000W/kg, respectively, while the cost will be reduced to about ¥100,000/kWh.

For 2020, the goals are set at 200Wh/kg energy density, 2,500W/kg output density and ¥20,000/kWh for output density-oriented batteries, and 250Wh/kg energy density, 1,500W/kg output density and ¥20,000/kWh for energy density-oriented batteries.

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Text in Japanese

　新エネルギー・産業技術総合開発機構（NEDO）は2009年3月3日，「次世代自動車用蓄電池技術開発ロードマップ2008」の最終案を提示した。同 日開催の同ロードマップ第2回委員会が審議して承認された。細部の修正を経て，早ければ2009年3月中にNEDOのWebサイトで公開する。

　同ロードマップは，次世代自動車の主役と期待されるプラグイン・ハイブリッド車や電気自動車に使う2次電池の開発ロードマップを，「現状得られる 可能な限り詳細な情報に基づいてまとめた」（NEDO）もの。「現在」「2010年ごろ」「2015年ごろ」「2020年ごろ」「2030年以降」という 期限を決めて，それまでに到達すべき性能，コストなどを数値目標として掲げた。

　同ロードマップは，現在から2030年ごろまではリチウム（Li）イオン2次電池が主役になると見ている。開発の方向性としては，プラグイン・ハ イブリッド車やハイブリッド車に使う出力密度重視型と，電気自動車に使うエネルギ密度重視型の二つを想定している。2009年3月段階の電池コスト（セル ではなく電池パック）も分析しており，両タイプとも約20万円/kWhと推定している。出力密度重視型の現状のエネルギ密度は70Wh/kg,出力密度は 1800W/kg。エネルギ密度重視型のエネルギ密度は100Wh/kg，出力密度は400W/kgとしている。

　こうした現状の性能，コストを，2010年ころには，出力密度重視型でエネルギ密度70Wh/kg，出力密度2000W/kg，コストは半減の約 10万円/kWhとし，エネルギ密度重視型では同じ同じく100Wh/kg，1000W/kg，約10万円/kWhとする目標を掲げている。2020年こ ろの出力密度重視型の目標は，エネルギ密度が200Wh/kg，出力密度2500W/kg，コスト約2万円/kWh。エネルギ密度重視型では，同じく 250Wh/kg，1500W/kg，約2万円/kWhとしている。

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Source: Tech-On

Japan to push development of battery technologies (NEDO、蓄電技術開発室を設置)

NEDO, an independent administrative institution in Japan, established March 1, 2009, a new section for conducting integrated and all-around research and development of power storage technologies.

NEDO (New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization) plans to invite participants to the "Fundamental Scientific Research Project on Advanced Storage Batteries" in order to approach the performance limit of storage batteries through academic-industrial cooperation.

Currently, the Japanese transport industry relies nearly 100% on petroleum. Therefore, wider use of the next-generation automobiles, including electric cars, plug-in hybrids and fuel cell vehicles, which can be powered by a variety of energies and are environmentally-friendly, is expected.

Battery technologies are the core technologies for all types of the next-generation vehicles. And it is expected that driving distances will be significantly improved if full-fledged batteries for electric cars (advanced storage batteries) are developed. In recent years, technology development in this field has been advancing in the US and Europe because of supports from the governments, and the competition has escalated on a global scale.

Responding to foreign newcomers as well as the expanding market and needs, NEDO established the new section to maintain the superiority and competitiveness of the Japanese storage battery industry. This is the first newly-established technology development section since NEDO became an independent administrative institution in October 2003.

The section for the development of power storage technologies will promote the development of technologies for attaining the limit performance of Li-ion secondary batteries. Also, it will develop and expand the use of an innovative storage battery that is superior to Li-ion batteries by promoting international standardization of safety and lifetime evaluation methods. Furthermore, the new section will support the forming of a cross-disciplinary consortium for the development of storage battery technologies.

The section will take over the "Technology Development for Energy Storage System Facilitating Systematic Collaboration" for system power and the "Technology development for the Next-Generation Automotive Energy Storage System" for automobiles, for the time being. And it will undertake the Fundamental Scientific Research Project on Advanced Storage Batteries, a new project for fiscal 2009.

The section has an annual budget of about ¥7.1 billion (approx US$73 million) for fiscal 2009 and seven staff members. But it plans to reinforce the structure in the future so as to respond to a wide variety of needs for storage battery technologies.

Source: Tech-On