us automakers join battery project

DETROIT --
Automakers in Detroit are investing in the development of a lighter-weight, cheaper hybrid battery that is expected to be put into cars by 2010 and able to compete with today\'s top cars
Japanese-
Hybrid battery. The Milwaukee-
Toyota-based suppliers will compete with a joint venture called Panasonic Electric Vehicle Energy, which produces batteries for Toyota and has a 74% hybrid battery market.
Sanyo has a 13% market share, producing batteries for Escape and Accord, and a 13% market share for independent Panasonic battery operations that produce hybrid batteries for Honda Civic.
Sales of hybrid cars rose from 84,000 in 2004 to 205,000 in 2005, showing no signs of slowing.
However, the current price of nickel, the main element of almost all hybrid batteries, has risen from $1 kg (2. 2 pounds)in the mid-
Between $1990 and $1 kg today, automakers are considering alternatives.
\"Johnson controls because of their joint venture in lithium-
\"Ion,\" said Dave Hemans, executive engineer at Toyota\'s advanced technology vehicle.
\"The biggest advantage of JCI is that they have a historic relationship with the automotive industry.
\"A year ago, Johnson Control, the world\'s largest traditional lead producer
Acid car battery with Paris joint venture
Development of lithium-based advanced power supply solutions based on Saftion batteries. Ford Motor Company.
, Department of Energy--
Member of the American advanced battery Alliance-
Awarded Johnson control and Saft
Contract of August.
Develop lithium-ion batteries.
In July, automakers and Doe signed an agreement worth $0. 125 billion to separate the cost of hybrid battery development projects.
Johnson Control is also providing funds and equipment, expertise and staff for the development of batteries.
The target is $500 per battery.
Alan monbi, vice president and general manager of Johnson Control hybrid battery business, said the company has more than 100 employees in Milwaukee with the goal of achieving its goal before the end of the contract.
Johnson control has been working on hybrid batteries since the 1970 s, although they were originally made from lead acid.
The company began to explore nickel
Metal hydrogenation and lithium in the early 1990 s-
The ions were in the late 1990 s, Mumby said.
\"This is just a logical extension of our business,\" says Mumby . \". Lithium-
Ion describes an energy transfer method using lithium, a rich material with three times the energy density of nickel.
More than 50% of lithium manufacturing costs-ion and nickel-
The material uses a metal hydrogen battery. Lithium-
Ion batteries will be cheaper than nickel
Metal hydrogen batteries because it requires less lithium to provide the same power as nickel, said Menahem andman, founder of House General Battery Consulting, Oregon, California
The consumer electronics industry is a major user of lithium.
Ion batteries, most of them found in mobile phones and laptops.
But, with the popularity of consumer electronics, batteries can cause a problem for automakers, which has little impact on battery manufacturers to develop what they need.
\"If you want a specific battery, you have to do it yourself,\" Hermance said . \".
\"This is what the company is doing.
All car companies have development plans that can be proposed both internally and in partnership with battery developersPower battery.
Limited use of Toyota-volume lithium-
Ion battery in Toyota Vitz, Japanese version of Yaris.
But it\'s usually not considered a real hybrid because it only uses lithium-
Ion technology of automatic startand-stop system. Lithium-
Ion battery manufacturers are working on safety issues.
Klaus Brandt, executive vice president of the Pa Plymouth Conference, said one of the most critical manufacturing processes is the manufacture of electrodes, which are the positive and negative poles of the battery.
This process is usually done by a solvent.
Based on the coating process.
\"There is a safety risk, but there is also a variety of environmental burden in dealing with a large amount of solvents,\" Brent said . \".
Another challenge in developing Lithium
The ion battery is looking for a market that has not yet been dominated by Japanese manufacturers, says Mr Brant.
\"In general, Japanese battery manufacturers have aligned themselves with Japanese automakers,\" said Brandt . \".
\"We think people are interested in getting this technology instead of going to Japanese joint ventures or other licensing deals.