Transport

Japanese company Hitachi has developed a new lithium-ion battery for plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) that the company claims has over four times the capacity of its existing models.

The new batteries have a capacity of 25 Ah, which means they can run for around 20 km in electric vehicle mode.

Newly developed electrodes, which optimise thickness and composition of conductive materials, offer an improved balance between high energy (for electric mode only) and high power (for hybrid mode) performance.

Hitachi has also incorporated a ceramic heat-resistant separator, which keep apart the cathode and anode and maintains ionic conductivity, in the new batteries to improve safety.

The company plans to start volume production of the new batteries and add them to its range of lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles.

Since 2000, Hitachi says it has shipped over 900,000 lithium-ion cells, mainly for commercial hybrid buses and trucks, trains and other applications.

The new batteries, which will be on display for the first time at the 1st International Rechargeable Battery Expo in Tokyo in March, will also open up applications in construction and industrial equipment, power storage devices and other industrial areas.

For further information:
www.hitachi.com

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