November 2008

around the industry

ExxonMobil Wins Award and Breaks Ground

ExxonMobil Chemical has won the 2008 ICIS Chemical Business award in Best Product Innovation for its battery separator film technology. Pioneered by a team of ExxonMobil scientists led by Dr. Pat Brant, the technology significantly improves the power, capacity, stability and safety margins of Li-ion batteries, enabling the use of these smaller and more powerful batteries.

The commercially available film is produced by ExxonMobil Chemical at a plant in Nasu, Japan. With Japanese affiliate TonenGeneral, the company has broken ground on a new plant in Gumi, South Korea, to meet growing demand for new and existing applications. Government officials were guests at a groundbreaking ceremony October 9. Start-up is expected in 2009.

"Highly advanced, precision materials are essential to the rapid progress we see in lithium-ion battery development. The separator films produced by ExxonMobil Chemical have performed exceptionally well under the highly demanding conditions required in this industry," says EnerDel CEO Ulrik Grape.

Cabot Breaks Ground on New Fumed Silica Facility

Cabot Corp. has broken ground on its new world-class fumed silica manufacturing facility located in Tianjin, China. The facility is a project of Cabot Bluestar Chemical (Tianjin) Co. Ltd, a joint venture between Cabot Corp.'s wholly owned subsidiary, Cabot (China) Ltd., and China National Bluestar (Group) Corp., a part of the China National Chemical Group. The joint venture will invest approximately $40 million to build Cabot's next world-class fumed silica facility, with a manufacturing capacity of about 7000 metric tons per year, to be commissioned in mid-2010.

Porous Power Acquires Li-ion Facility

Colorado-based Porous Power Technologies LLC has purchased a battery development and test facility in metro- politan Philadelphia from Lithium Technology Corp. PPT and its customers are now using the facility to test and develop new versions of its Symmetrix™ battery separator, a previous winner of Frost & Sullivan's "Advanced Energy Storage Technology Innovation of the Year" award. The facility is also being used to develop application-specific equipment and processes for lithium-ion cell lamination for hybrid and electric vehicle batteries.

This Pennsylvania plant gives battery companies a new resource for hard-to-obtain lamination process development and test services for large format, high-performance flat-cell batteries.

$1M Wearable Power Prize Competition Winner

The DuPont/Smart Fuel Cell (SFC) Team was awarded a $1 million top prize for winning the Department of Defense's Wearable Power Prize competition.

The competition was launched in July 2007 by the DoD's Research and Engineering Directorate to help develop a long-endurance, lightweight power pack for warfighters in the field. After beginning with 169 registered entries, testing concluded on October 4 when the final six teams met at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms, California. The exclusive supplier of testing equipment for the competition was Maccor of Tulsa, Oklahoma.

DuPont/SFC won by building the lightest wearable system (above) that provided an average of 20 watts of power for more than 96 hours and weighed less than 4,000 grams, or 8.8 pounds. AMI of Ann Arbor, Michigan, was awarded $500,000 for second place, and Jenny 600S of Middleburg,Virginia, won the $250,000 third prize.

All of the finalists used either fuel cell or battery technologies or a combination of both to meet the rigorous standards set by the DoD.

Boston-Power Expands U.S. Headquarters

Boston-Power Inc. has officially opened its expanded U.S. headquarters in Westborough, Massachusetts. Highlighting the festivities was a ribbon-cutting ceremony featuring Massachusetts Congressman Jim McGovern, pictured on left of founder Dr. Christina Lampe-Onnerud. Additional participants included Bruce Anderson (far left), New England Clean Energy Council co-chairman; George Ramirez (far right), deputy director of business development, Massachusetts Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development; and Patrick Cloney, executive director of Massachusetts Office of Business Development.

Founded in 2005 by Dr. Lampe-Onnerud, one of the world's foremost authorities in battery technology, the company has grown from initial operations based in the carriage house behind her home in Framingham, Massachusetts, to a team of more than 500 in Westborough and in mass manufacturing operations in Greater China. The company expects to continue its strong job growth, and is looking to base manufacturing operations in Massachusetts, elsewhere in the U.S. and internationally.

Initially targeting notebook computers and coming to market in early 2009, the company's first product, Sonata, delivers like-new performance for three years and has earned first-of-its-kind certifications by top environmental groups in Europe and China.

Exide Invests in RD&E Organization, Adds Jobs

An advanced research and development organization will be established at Exide Technologies's world headquarters in Alpharetta, Georgia. This group will be led by Rick Johnson, who has assumed the new role of vice president, Advanced Research and Development for Exide Technologies, focusing on technology development for potential integration into products during the next two to five years. The organization's work will include development of advanced lead-acid systems and other battery chemistries, including lithium-ion, for applications such as hybrid electric vehicles and renewable energy storage.

Also, two global product development centers, one in Budingen, Germany for worldwide industrial energy and the other in Alpharetta, Georgia for worldwide transportation, will focus on global product design and materials and process development. Friedrich Kramm, newly titled senior director, global product development for Exide Technologies, will lead the Industrial Energy Center; John Miller, also senior director, Global Product Development for Exide, will lead the Center for Transportation.

"The development of these three groups also will include the addition of approximately 60 engineering positions, and we already have begun to identify these appropriate professionals," says Dr. Paul Cheeseman, vice president, global research and engineering for Exide Technologies.

Brilmyer Appointed Atraverda Vice President

Atraverda of South Wales has appointed Dr. George Brilmyer as vice president, North American business development. He brings more than 28 years of research and development experience in batteries, fuel cells, electroplating and corrosion engineering.

With a Ph.D. in analytical chemistry and specialization in electro-chemistry, Brilmyer has published more than 30 technical publications on a variety of chemical, battery and fuel cell issues, as well as having four patents in the chemical and engineering sciences with three more patent applications pending. He has also written numerous meeting and technical reports for ABT.

In his new role, Brilmyer will commercialize applications of Atraverda's Ebonex technology and develop new applications and opportunities for Ebonex. He also is working closely with battery manufacturers and forming customer partnerships to drive battery designs.

He is the first appointment since Michael Gilchrist took over as Atraverda CEO in August 2008.

Goolsby Now Valence Chief Financial Officer

Austin, Texas-based Valence Technology Inc., an international developer of safe lithium phosphate energy storage solutions, has appointed Ross A. Goolsby as the company's new CFO, effective November 17.

"Goolsby brings with him expertise in finance and information technology, including extensive planning and budgeting, internal controls and SEC reporting experience," says Robert L. Kanode, president of Valence.

Most recently Goolsby served as senior V.P. for Healthtronics Inc. of Austin, Texas. In addition to his day-to-day oversight of the finance and treasury department at Healthtronics, he led the integration of three acquisitions, restructured an operating division, directed several IT systems projects and managed all investor relations activity.

Goolsby earned a bachelor of business administration degree in accounting and graduated magna cum laude from the University of Houston.

Buffett Bets on Chinese Maker of Hybrid Batteries

MidAmerican Energy Holdings Co, a subsidiary of Warren Buffett's investment vehicle Berkshire Hathaway Inc., announced late last month it will purchase 225 million shares of Shenzhen-based BYD Co. Ltd., representing around 10% interest. The investment is valued at HK$1.8 billion (about US$230 million).

Buffett rarely invests in high-tech companies, as he once famously said that he will not even consider investing in businesses that are too difficult to understand. New competition arises every day, and it's too hard to know when a breakthrough will render a technology obsolete. But what sets BYD apart from the rest of the crowded IT pack is its decision in 2003 to get into the automobile manufacturing business via the acquisition of Shaanxi Qinchuan Auto Co. Ltd.

BYD Auto sold close to 100,000 auto units last year, with only two car models: a subcompact F3/F3R and a class-B sedan F6.

Valence Names Lim as Chief Technical Officer

Valence Technology Inc. has appointed K.C. Lim, Ph.D. as the company's chief technology officer. He will be based out of Valence's Suzhou, China office.

Dr. Lim was most recently the president and co-founder of Pleiades Battery Manufacturing of Suzhou, China, which develops and manufactures high capacity, large format lithium-ion batteries for EV applications. Prior to Pleiades, he co-founded and served as general manager of Energy Sciences International LLC, a consulting firm specializing in lithium-ion battery manufacturing technologies and advanced production machine designs.

From 1998 to 2005, Dr. Lim served as co-founder, general manager and chief technical officer of Macro Energy-Tech Inc., a consumer electronics lithium-ion battery producer. From 1985 to 1998, he served as a member of the technical staff at Hughes Research Laboratory in Malibu, California, where he participated in advanced industrial R&D programs, including liquid crystal displays, positron-polymer interactions, lithium-ion batteries and pioneering work on liquid crystal millimeter-wave antennas.

Prior to Hughes, Dr. Lim was a research physicist at the Institute of Polymers and Organic Solids at the University of California-Santa Barbara. From 1980 to 1982, he was a post-doctoral fellow at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. He holds a Ph.D. in physics from SUNY-Buffalo, and both a Master of Education degree and a B.S. in physics from the University of Malaya in Kuala Lampur. He is a member of the AIP and the ECS.

PowerGenix Closes $30M Series D Round

PowerGenix of San Diego, California, manufacturer of non-toxic, high performance rechargeable nickel-zinc (NiZn) batteries, has closed its $30 million Series D financing round. The round was led by Bessemer Venture Partners and included existing investors: Advent International, Angeleno Group, Braemar Energy Ventures, Granite Ventures, OnPoint Technologies and Technology Partners.

PowerGenix has seen huge demand for its batteries. The company has signed $75 million in customer supply agreements since beginning high-volume manufacturing in March of this year and is supplying NiZn cells into multiple markets including power tool, lawn and garden, consumer AA, military and light electric vehicles.

"PowerGenix's advanced nickel-zinc batteries provide more performance at a lower cost than any other energy storage option, allowing products used by millions of people every day to weigh less and have longer run-time," said Justin Label, partner at Bessemer.

Solicore Enhances High-Speed Production Line

Solicore of Lakeland, Florida, is setting the pace for the thin-film battery industry by making significant enhancements to the high-speed production line for their ultra-thin flexible Flexion® batteries. Their high-speed manufacturing process involves comparatively fewer steps, enabling Solicore to produce larger quantities of a higher quality battery. The revamped process is on-line now and Solicore is currently delivering increased volumes of product.

The high-speed production line is more than four times faster than Solicore's original production equipment, and is capable of producing up to 1.25 million units per month ‚ the equivalent of approximately one battery every two seconds. The production line is fully automated, with in-line measurements and greater process controls that help to ensure maximum product quality.

Ener1 Acquires Enertech International

Ener1 Inc. of New York City, has closed its acquisition of an 83% interest in Enertech International, one of South Korea's largest lithium-ion cell producers. Ener1 purchased the equity stake in Enertech International (formerly Saehan Enertech) for 5 million shares of Ener1 Inc. common stock, 2.56 million warrants and $600,000 in cash from TVG Capital Partners.

In addition to acquiring a state of the art production facility and highly skilled engineers, Ener1's patent portfolio increases by 20 to a total of 132, including a worldwide patent for the stack winding and manufacturing method, a vital technique in the manufacture of large format flat (or "prismatic") cells. The Korean plant is ISO9001 and TL9000 certified, and generated 2007 revenues of $60.9 million, and EBITDA of $7.2 million.

Enertech previously worked with Ener1's lithium-ion battery subsidiary, EnerDel, to supply prototype and pre-production battery systems for Think Global. It is expected that Think Global and EnerDel will produce the first commercially available pure electric vehicle powered with a lithium-ion battery, to be marketed in Europe in 2009.

Hong Kong Groundbreaking

Hong Kong Highpower Technology Inc., a developer, manufacturer and marketer of nickel-metal hydride (Ni-MH) and lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries and related products, has announced the groundbreaking of its new Ni-MH battery manufacturing facility in Huizhou, Guangdong Province, China and commencement of building construction on site plans that have been environmentally certified.

Hong Kong Highpower Technology currently manufactures Ni-MH and Li-ion batteries and products from its main factory located in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province. Construction of the new facility in Huizhou is expected to be completed during the fourth quarter of 2009, at which time the company will move its entire manufacturing operations to the new location.

ZPower Developing Silver-Zinc Batteries

ZPower reports that it is currently working with leading manufacturers of notebook computers, cellphones and smartphones to incorporate silver-zinc battery technology in next-generation products.

According to the company, a silver-zinc battery option will be rolled out "in a major notebook computer in 2009." The battery is slated to be released as a premium extended-life battery, and the notebook will be "dual chemistry enabled," which means it will work with either silver-zinc or traditional Li-ion batteries.

ZPower's silver-zinc battery offers up to 40% more run time than traditional Li-ion batteries. In addition, more than 95% of the battery's elements can be recycled. The raw materials recovered in the recycling process of the batteries are the same quality as those that go into the creation of the battery, so the need to mine for new materials is minimized.

ZPower will be one of the first companies to offer financial incentives to consumers who recycle their silver-zinc batteries, the company said.

Saft Wins Hybrid Contract from Titan Energy

Titan Energy Development, Inc., the Detroit-based subsidiary of Titan Energy Worldwide Inc.and exclusive manufacturer of the state-of-the-art Sentry 5000™ mobile utility system, has selected Saft of Cockeysville, Maryland to power its Renewable Energy Mobile Utility System (REMUS). Designed for military application, REMUS incorporates renewable wind power, solar power and battery power to supplement a dependable diesel generator and provide utility scale electrical services in situations where continued fuel sources are not available or too costly.

"The trailer requires a small, lightweight battery capable of controlling numerous operations while maximizing fuel efficiency and Saft's advanced technology most effectively meets these specifications," said Thomas Alcide, general manager of Saft's specialty battery group.

ABAT Adds New Contract

Advanced Battery Technologies, Inc. has signed a five-year sales contract with Veken USA Co. Ltd., a China-based multi-billion dollar corporation and one of the world's leading OEM manufacturers serving many power sports brands. During the first year of the contract, ABAT anticipates delivering 10,000 sets of battery modules per month to Veken USA, generating approximately $27.0 million in annual revenue.

As part of the contract, ABAT will deliver Li-ion Polymer 48V and 15AH battery packs, for use in Veken's hybrid scooters for distribution in Europe, the U.S. and other countries and regions. Wuxi Angell, a China-based scooter, moped, motorcycle manufacturer, will be responsible for assembling the hybrid scooters.

Zhiguo Fu, chairman and CEO of ABAT, stated, "We believe the agreement with Veken will further expand and solidify ABAT's footprint outside of China and showcase ABAT's product offerings and services and the strength of our brand on a global scale."

IN MEMORIAM

Battery Industry Loses A Pioneer

David Linden of Little Silver, New Jersey, shown here with Rose, his wife of 63 years, died on September 15 at age 85 after a long illness.

In 1942, Dave, newly graduated at age 19 from CCNY with a B.S. in chemistry, went to work for the Low Temperature Power Branch of the U.S. Army Signal Corps at Fort Monmouth, New Jersey. Except for two years in the Navy (1944-46) he stayed there until 1978, becoming director of the Power Sources Division of what is now the Army Communication and Electronics Command (CECOM). Many new battery systems now available result from work done and supported by that division, including zinc/mercuric oxide, magnesium, nickel-cadmium and lithium batteries.

He organized the Power Sources Symposium in 1947 and chaired it until 1978. This international conference, devoted to battery and fuel cell technologies, was held annually until the 1960s when it became a biennial event held first in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, and now in Philadelphia, most recently this July. At the 2000 Conference he was honored with a lifetime achievement award.

He earned a M.S. in chemistry from the Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn and consulted for 25 years with Duracell Inc. on developing new portable battery systems.

Dave served on and chaired many committees and advisory groups responsible for coordinating government-wide battery and fuel cell development, performance and safety. These include the UL Industry Advisory Committee, the U.S. Department of Transportation, the American National Standards Institute, and the International Electrotechnical Commission.

Because he wrote so many articles on his battery work, such as sections for the Electronics Engineers' Handbook, McGraw-Hill published his first Handbook of Batteries in 1984, recognized as the authoritative reference on battery technology. The 2nd Edition came out in 1995 and, with the help of long-time friend Tom Reddy as co-editor, the 3rd Edition in 2001. The 4th Edition is now in preparation with Tom as editor and Dave as editor emeritus.

In addition to Rose, Dave is survived by three children, ten grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

Silver-Zinc Battery Expert Dies

Albert Himy of Alexandria, Virginia, shown here with his wife Lucie at the 2004 Power Sources Conference in Philadelphia, died on September 17, at age 85.

Born in Morocco and schooled in France in chemistry, physics, mathematics and electrical engineering, he arrived in the United States on May 15, 1957 and was so happy to be here that on May 16 he told Lucie he was born again.

His first job in the U.S. was chief engineer for Yardney, then he moved to MacDonald Douglas, then to NASA for the Gemini Project to Mars, during which his group successfully landed a rocket on Mars on July Fourth.

Al last worked for the U.S. Navy in Washington, DC, as head of the engineering department. "He was head engineer on most projects," Lucie said, "always striving for excellence in his work."

In many of his projects he used silver-zinc batteries and knew so much about them based on 26 years of working with all types and sizes of them, from button cells to submarine cells, that he wrote four books about them: Silver-Zinc Battery: Phenomena (1986), Silver-Zinc Batteries: Best Practices (1995), Silver-Zinc Battery: Various Topics and Related Systems (2001) and Silver-Zinc Battery: 4th Book (2003).

His description of what is in the last book is "a collection of all subjects covered in the trilogy .... amended, corrected, clarified and amplified with novel additions acquired over the years by field experience and lab experiments."

In 2000 he received a life achievement award and a Navy award for his contributions to the Power Sources Conference and achievements with mercury-free batteries.

Al's survivors include Lucie and son Eric, a concert pianist who lives in McLean, Virginia.