Toyota: NiMH more cost-effective than lithium
It could have been lithium powered?There was a time when it seemed that the third generation Toyota Prius was going to be powered by lithium-ion batteries. Then some cell phones and laptops exploded and, not long after, came the announcement that the new Prius would not use lithium.
According to Akira Kuroda from Toyota's Hybrid Vehicle Material Engineering Division, Toyota's decision not to use lithium wasn't about unreliable battery technology. Instead, it was all about cost.
Over the years Toyota has been able to bring down the cost of its NiMH battery packs "dramatically" and cost reductions, notes Kuroda, are the key to the continued success of the Prius.
Nonetheless, Toyota has had 126 lithium powered Prius hybrids on the road for over 3 years, and so far these vehicles have provided promising results. Moreover, Toyota is prepared to utilize lithium for both its plug-in Prius and its electric vehicles. However, don't expect a conventional Prius to use lithium until lithium costs can be significantly reduced.
Labels: Hybrid Vehicles, lithium battery, toyota prius
posted by Dahcredyns at
8:37 AM
9 Comments:
I wonder how many more MPG Prius would get if Toyota used Li-ion instead of NiMH.
It may save 50 lbs, more thermo efficient and that may bump up a few MPGs.
However, according to the Chief Engineer Otsuka-san, the Li-ion costs 3-4 times more than NiMH.
I agree with Toyota's decision to stick with NiMH.
i agree, dennis.
every study shows how little extra most consumers are willing to pay for hybrid technology. so cutting costs is critical.
what worries me, however, is does this mean that its going to take many more years before US automakers offer any real output of hybrids, etc?
the other day, one of GM's battery people stated that without convergence across the battery and auto industry, lithium profitability might not be possible.
that seems to indicate a very slow roll out of lithium-powered autos in the short to mid term.
Isn't Toyota the only car maker using NihM batteries. And are these a little bit behind the times?
NiMH batteries are the only proven, reliable, durable and cost effective EV battery on the planet.
End of the story.
If GM hadn't sold the NiMH rights to Texaco, who was gobbled up by Chevron six days later, then maybe we would have seen how good NiMH could be and how mass production could have driven down its costs. Instead, we have to try 139 different Lithium salts to find one that may or may not work.
Nearly all the current hybrid vehicles in production today use NiMH batteries....there is a reason for that, BTW.
Honda, Ford, and even GM's Two Mode hybrids use NiMH.
Due to the nature of hybrid usage of the battery (short charge and discharge cycles) NiMH is the perfect chemistry for it. It is inexpensive, rock solid, proven, long life, high power, fast recharge and light (compare to Lead Acid). Prius' HV battery pack is only 99 lbs (about 3 times heavier than a normal 12V lead acid).
NiMH recovers raw material (Nickel) that is worth more than it costs to recycle. This is not true for any other battery chemistry.
New discovery about Lithium
-------------------------------------
Low-Cost Lithium Sulfur Batteries Could Quadruple Life. (()9/06/09) When lithium-ion batteries were first introduced as replacements for older, heavier nickel-metal hydride (NiMH) batteries, they offered a breakthrough in greater energy density and lighter weight. This technology has made its way through the field of consumer electronics, and lithium-ion batteries are now ubiquitous. The next step in battery technology may come from the University of Waterloo, where Dr. Linda Nazar is working to develop lithium-sulfur batteries with promising characteristics including three to five times the storage of current lithium-ion batteries.
Source: http://www.ecogeek.org/power-storage/2791
Eventually, it seems, some form of lithium chemistry will become more cost-effective than NiMH. It's just not there today. However, there are numerous researchers out there exploring battery technology, so its only a matter of time before lithium replaces NiMH.
Moreover, the first lithium vehicles will come in production batches much smaller than the Prius, at least for the first few years. So, as has been stated above, Toyota was smart, I believe, to continue to use NiMH in the Prius.
The only reason an oil company would buy the rights to the NIMH batteries is to limit technology. All they are doing is helping Americans turn away from the American oil companies and the American car companies and we will all be spending our money on the electric cars from Toyota. All morons in the end.
well, Toyota licenses technology to Ford and Nissan, is Toyota then also conspiring?
nonetheless, GM couldn't have handled NiMH technology any worse. had they kept the patents they could have at least gotten a royalty on every Prius sold.
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