The past week’s laptops-flambé was a reminder again that not all technology is sexy.
Dell recalled some 4.1 million batteries and we were all reminded again that some of the most important elements – like batteries – remain the bottleneck to whole new realms of development. They are something we often think of as an old technology but which in reality are deceptively high tech and extremely essential.
The commercial production of lithium ion batteries was a hard-earned breakthrough that made lightweight, long life laptops possible. Introduced about a decade ago, these rechargeable power sources replaced chunkier, heavier, and shorter-lived technologies including the nickel based battery and the lead-acid battery.
Lithium is the lightest of all metals, has the greatest electrochemical potential and provides the largest energy density for weight. It is, however, “inherently unstable.” Translation – energy happens. Sometimes followed by flame. This is called a "runaway thermal reaction,” which melts battery cases, which either creates a pressure and heat explosion ... or simply spews beyond-hot liquids hither and yon.
Research into lithium-based batteries began in 1912, with serious commercial development in the 1970s. It took about 20 years of intense research before the technology was considered safe for the commercial market. Sony offered the first product in 1991.
The big danger in Lithium batteries comes from the reaction that happens when they are overheated. You know, running in an enclosed area that doesn’t have a cooling fan or adequate circulation? Like, uhm, a laptop computer. Heat creates instability and, well, bad things happen.
The fact that lithium ion batteries get hot doesn’t surprise anyone. Ever feel the bottom of your laptop or your cell phone after a half hour or so of constant use? Products like “Cool Tabs” and related items are designed to keep the machines – and the furniture and body parts near them – cooler.
Nor is the fact that they are down right flammable a surprise. Apple ate a recall several years ago around the issue and both Dell, whose machines contain the current blazing batteries, and Sony, who makes them, knew about the potential for smoke several years ago, according to news reports. Descriptions of incidents dating back almost a decade are appearing online – incidents creating actual burn injuries, not just a silly smoking scare story.
Unfortunately, it took a few flames before the companies called fire and issued a recall.
There is some industry debate about whether lithium ion technology inherently creates this problem or if the design of the batteries or the machine itself is the contributing factor. For example, Fujitsu and Lenovo (formerly IBM lapatops) claim that design –allowing high voltage to flow from AC adapters to the computer battery – is at fault. (Of course neither of these companies does this in its batteries, they say. Gee, that’s a surprise.)
But in the drive to lengthen battery life – a key decision factor in laptop purchases -- it is equally inventible that the notion of safe design is going to press to the limit. No one wants to catch on fire, but just find a consumer who will trade six-hour battery life for two-hour battery life on the off chance their purchase might be one of the toasty takeaways.
Of course, portable electronic devices aren’t the only technology requiring battery power. The search for a truly functional electric car has hinged largely on battery technology – finding something rechargeable, that runs long enough to be practical, and that is safe.
So what is on the horizon? Not surprisingly, the smoke around Dell has given investors a new fit of interest in the rather unsexy battery technology market. A number of companies, including Zinc Matrix Power of Camarillo CA are hard at work on the task. This company, as its name suggests, forsakes lithium in favor of zinc. Zinc isn’t flammable. And it is claiming 10-hour lifetimes from prototype zinc batteries. The potential return is high and investors have put $32 million in venture funding into the company since 1999.
Manhattan Scientifics is following the methanol-based path to battery development. MTI Micro is exploring hydrogen fuel cells. Technically these are both “fuel cells” (which create power through a chemical reaction) rather than batteries, but to the consumer of cell phones, laptops, and electric cars, it’s just a matter of semantics. The Holy Grail is a portable pack that packs power over and over and over.
It all comes down to the ability power our tools and our toys. Once we break through the battery block, whole new applications will open up. Computers and cars my have sexy exteriors, but on the inside they all rely on the basic of portable power, the next great frontier.
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