Lead Batteries for Hybrids and EVs? Exide and Axion Think It's a Go

Talk about advanced technology batteries usually includes words like "lithium," "polymer" and "cobalt."

Lead, the substance on which common automotive batteries have been based for decades, is old school. Lead-acid batteries are too heavy, too bulky and won't hold enough energy for sufficient time to be useful in modern hybrids and electric cars.

But don't tell that to Axion Power International , a small, publicly traded (over-the-counter) Pennsylvania battery and energy storage products developer that uses a new lead-carbon technology to lower the batteries' weight, reduce their size and boost their energy density.

Axion claims that its lead-carbon, or PbC, batteries, can compete with nickel-metal hydride and lithium-ion batteries for use in conventional and plug-in hybrid vehicles and in all-electric vehicles.

While still not small and light enough for use in electric sports cars, they can be used in larger family cars, SUVs and pickups, the company says.

The lead-carbon battery's big advantages are relative low cost, ease of recycling and easy integration into existing battery manufacturing processes, thus avoiding the huge expense of building and equipping new plants, Axion Chief Executive Tom Granville told Green Car Advisor this morning.

The company is announcing a deal today to supply its batteries in a multi-phase supply contract with with Exide Technologies, a major global player in the energy storage market.

Exide, which has been looking for a way to break into the growing hybrid and battery-electric vehicle market, plans to test the batteries over a variety of applications.

"We believe our batteries can compete with the more expensive and exotic battery chemistries. In the end, our relatively low cost, when compared to the battery chemistries that appear to dominate today's headlines, along with our ease of integration into existing manufacturing lines, will be telling advantages when novelty wears thin and cost-consciousness and practicality move center stage," Granville said.

The agreement calls for Exide to purchase and test Axion batteries over a period of up to four years, and would make Exide the principal manufacturer of Axion PbC batteries for transportation and stationary power-storage applications, the company said.

The initial phase of the test program would run form now through January 2010, with subsequent phases dependent on the outcome of the initial 10-month trial.

Conventional lead acid batteries, invented 150 years ago in France, use electrodes made of lead. They can hold and quickly discharge a lot of energy -- good for starting cars but not so good for keeping an electric motor turning for long periods.

Conventional lead batteries use thin electrodes that can be damaged if the battery is deeply discharged -- that's why car batteries can be ruined if run down while trying to start a balky car. Conventional lead batteries also won't stand up to frequent rapid recharging, a requirement of batteries for electric and hybrid-electric vehicles, Granville said.

Axion's technology replaces the negative electrode, usually made of solid lead, with a much lighter one made of the same type of activated carbon used in supercapacitors -- devices that can store a lot of energy, release it quickly and be charged and recharged repeatedly without damage.

Used in an electric auto application, a supercapacitor would boost acceleration, but only for a brief energy spurt -- while another battery, usually energy-dense lithium-ion, would be needed to keep the car running mile after mile.

Axion's battery, the company says, would combine the best characteristics of both a powerful supercapacitor and an energy-dense battery for longer range.

While still much heavier than the new lightweight lithium-ion batteries many companies are racing to perfect for hybrid and electric vehicle use (heat buildup and longevity are ongoing concerns), Axion's batteries -- about 20 percent lighter than conventional lead-acid batteries -- are suitable for autos that don't need powerful acceleration but do need affordable price tags.

Elon Musk, chairman of electric roadster manufacturer Tesla Motors, recently said that a replacement lithium-ion battery pack for the small but quick two-seater would cost $36,000 at today's prices.

Axion recently converted a pickup truck (photo, above) to an EV running on its batteries, with an all-electric range of 45 miles, at a cost of  "less than $3,000 worth of batteries," said Granville.

That battery pack is about the size of 10 conventional lead-acid batteries, he said, adding that a PbC pack of about the same size and weight (320 pounds of so) would be needed for a extended-range plug-in hybrid vehicle.

The company said its agreement with Exide envisions use of the lead-carbon batteries in conventional cars and trucks and -- built into large battery packs -- in hybrid-electric and battery-electric vehicles, fuel-cell electric vehicles, and a variety of marine, military and heavy-duty commercial vehicles.

The batteries also could be used in stationary applications to store power from wind and solar sources.

All depending, of course, on the outcome of Exide's market testing.

Posted by

John O'Dell April 14, 2009, 9:17 AM

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