Developers of New "Superlattice Structure" Lithium Battery Announce Boost in Electric Car Range

Anyone who has followed the electric car industry over the past few decades has heard that, in addition to lackluster and inconsistent interest by gas-addicted Big Auto, the biggest hurdle facing widespread adoption of cleaner cars has been battery technology.

Now that gas prices are at record highs, it isn't surprising that past months would see various announcements of increased innovation and investment in this area.

Now, North Carolina-based Superlattice Power Inc has announced a successful move toward development of a new cathode material, which the company says "will be incorporated to a Lithium Ion Polymer battery that significantly increases operating voltage range and energy density."

Superlattice Power says its new Lithium Ion Polymer battery would allow electric vehicles to be driven over 200 miles, compared to the current 120 to 140 mile range. They are said to be able to operate at a voltage range of 4.3V to 2V.

What is a superlattice? It refers to the crystal structure of the compound, and indicates periodically alternating layers of several substances. In this context the superlattice is a cathode material in which part of the transition metal is substituted by lithium. Ideally it will have a wide voltage range and high capacity, and be non-toxic and disposable. Superlattice Power's work is based on cathode material made from manganese, cobalt, nickel and titanium.

The material has reportedly been synthesized at an industrial scale. Now, Superlattice Power has begun the process of optimizing the parameters suitable for large batteries, which will hopefully be used not only in electric vehicles but also in the field of “Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS)”.

TDG asked Dr. Donald Sadoway, professor of materials chemistry at MIT and one of the world's leading experts on batteries, for his analysis of Superlattice Power's announcement. "It's hard to know what they have here," he says. "The critical feature is the ability of the compound to accept lithium, and to do so reversibly without breakdown of the atomic arrangement (conversion to another crystal structure). If the researchers can stabilize an atomic arrangement that exchanges lithium over many cycles of charging and discharging without loss of energy storage capacity (200 miles driving range), then this represents a major improvement."

Dr. Sadoway adds that the company would need to demonstrate that they can produce the material in large quantities at a cost that is competitive with the cheapest cathode materials currently available.

For his part, Dr. Surajit Sengupta, Director of Battery R&D for Superlattice, says, “Our objective is to create the next generation of Lithium Ion Polymer battery that is environmentally non-toxic, safe, less expensive and more powerful.”

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Inflatable Electric Cars: Surround Your Body in Bliss

Here’s an interesting idea: instead of putting the airbag in the car, put the car in the airbag.

Sure it sounds silly, but XP vehicles, a start-up in California, is doing just that with their upcoming electric car, the Whisper™. Apparently, XP has taken the same sort of airbag technology developed to safely land recent NASA missions on Mars and used it to create an inflatable polymer car frame in which they pack all the essentials for it to actually be considered an automobile.

Not only does XP vehicles state that the Whisper™ will have a range of 2,500 miles using their “hot-swap XPack Multi-Core™ battery/fuel cell powerplant,” they are aiming for a price point of under $5,000. The cars will be sold direct online, initially only offered in Asian markets, and you will be able to configure them with a variety of different colors, decals, stereo systems, iPod mounts, and alarms - none of which will cover up for the fact that you’re driving a balloon.

The car can be shipped to customers in two cardboard boxes and “can be assembled by two people of average education level” in “less than two hours.” What they don’t tell you is that people with Ph.D.’s will be completely unable to figure the damn things out.

As far as safety goes, without an actual product it will be hard to verify the claims, but XP states that the car “will float in an emergency such as a flood or tsunami” and that you could “drive it off a cliff without serious injury.”

Imagine the possibilities for all sorts of discerning demographic groups:

• Enterprising young bank robbers: Rob the bank, drive away in a Whisper™, then deflate it and pack it up before the authorities can stop laughing.
• Tire slashing hoodlums: Now you’re not restricted to only slashing tires.
• Clowns for hire: Drive to your gig in a Whisper™ and turn it into a balloon animal in front of a crowd of adoring 4 year olds.

But really, if the car can go 2,500 miles without having to charge it up and it costs less than $5,000, who cares what it looks like or what havoc it might wreak on your social life? It gets you from point A to point B on one charge, even if those points are Portland, OR, and Mackinac Island. We’ll see if the Whisper™ ever makes it to reality, but if it does I might actually consider buying one.

Gas 2.0 Posts Related to Electric Vehicles:

• An Electric Car You Can Buy Today: The $20K TRIAC EV
• Nissan to Sell Electric Cars in US by 2010
• Are Plug-Ins and Electric Cars A Health Hazard?
• Affordable Electric Cars Coming to US in 2009

Image credits: XP Vehicles

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Convert Your Gas Mower to Solar

I hate my lawn. I’ve seriously considered ripping the whole thing out to expand my veggie garden. I hate it for a couple of reasons. First, it requires water, a lot of it, to keep it green. But in California where I haven't seen rain since February, that's not exactly practical...or cheap. And secondly, it requires mowing, which means cranking up my old gas-powered lawn mower, which wracks me with guilt every time I use it. So, for now, I give it neither. It’s a brown mess.

Thanks to Hacknmod tracking down three ways to convert gas lawn mowers to solar and electric, however, I can solve at least the lawn-mower issue. A tidy brown plot is in my future. It also solves another problem – I’m an early bird and can feel the glaring eyes from neighbors’ windows when I crank up my mower at 7 AM on a Sunday. Now, I can mow as soon as the sun comes up for all they care!

Convert your gas mower to a solar electric unit with an electric motor, battery, and solar unit.

Stick a solar panel on your electric mower for free energy.

Or charge your battery with a separate solar unit.

These could make for some fun summer projects! And if you’re the social type, you could even learn how to do this and hold a workshop in your neighborhood or community. Then your neighbors won’t feel the glare of your evil eye when they crank up their loud, gassy mowers.

Of course, if you aren't in to mods or DIY craftiness, then you can check out some pre-built electric mowers or, to please your tech-loving heart, go with a hover mower.

Oh, and don't forget - if you need to change the oil, there's always cow-fat motor oil.

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