When it comes to battery research and technology, people are constantly looking toward the lithium-ion battery to see the next big breakthrough. However, researchers at the chemical company BASF are showcasing and older battery type as a strong competitor against the li-ion.
BASF researchers are taking the nickel-metal hydride battery (NiMH) and giving it a boost to lead to cheaper electric cars. The assumption for electric car makers it that improvements in the lithium-ion battery will make cars cheaper and extend their driving range. While that may be true, the NiMH may also be able to do this with a little improvement.
The chemical company has already been able to double the amount of energy these old battery types can store, thus making them comparable to the lithium-ion. Researchers also state that there is still much room for improvement – with the potential to increase energy storage by an additional eight times.
Further, the batteries are set to cost roughly half as much as the cheapest lithium-ion battery.
While the lithium-ion battery may still be lighter than the NiMH, it does possess some important inherent benefits.
This from MIT Technology Review:
But nickel-metal hydride batteries have some significant advantages in cars, which is why they’ve been used in hybrids for decades. They’re durable, and inherently safer than lithium-ion batteries, partly because they don’t use flammable liquids, as lithium-ion batteries do—they don’t catch fire if they overheat or are overcharged so their cooling systems and electronic controls are far simpler. Safety systems can add about 25 percent to the cost of a lithium-ion battery pack, and increase their weight by 50 percent, based on data from the industry group U.S. Advanced Battery Consortium.
Then next step at BASF is to take the NiMH batteries and swap materials in to allow them to house more energy and withstand higher voltages.
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