German battery to ignite electric car

FRANKFURT: German cars are known for strength, speed and high fuel consumption, but a firm in eastern Saxony has designed a lithium-ion battery membrane that could finally make electric cars common.

For years, battery-powered cars have been hampered by technological hurdles, with researchers seeking to resolve problems of weight, autonomy and ways of recharging vehicles quickly and easily. Recent progress towards lighter and more powerful batteries has been made however, in particular by groups like the Japanese car maker Toyota with its hybrid vehicles, and high-tech firms in France.

Germans were said to be plodding along behind, but batteries made by the a firm called Li-Tec "take up 30% less volume than those from Toyota" and "allow you to go three times further for the same weight than French models", said Tim Schaefer, a director of the company.

"The foundations have now been laid" for the building of electric cars that also deliver performance, he added. A spokesman for the German tool and auto parts company Bosch said: "It's a step towards totally electric cars." Housed in a stylish rectangular silver pouch, the "Separion" consists of two lithium electrodes in an electrolyte, or liquid conductor. What differentiates it from similar batteries is that the electrodes are separated by a flexible ceramic membrane that provides greater thermal stability, according to the German group.

Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com