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Toyota: solid-state batteries coming in 2020, 3-4 times better than li-ion




Toyota has never been a big fan of lithium ion batteries, and has a plan in place to replace them with solid-state batteries that are three-to-four times more powerful. Toyota will commercialize solid-state batteries around 2020 and lithium air batteries – which offer a fivefold increase for the same weight – could follow several years later, said Shigeki Suzuki, managing officer for material engineering. Suzuki didn't offer details on a rollout plan or vehicle volumes.

As for Toyota's limited interest in lithium ion batteries, they are present in the Toyota RAV4 EV (pictured) and the Toyota Prius V, but nickel metal hydride batteries have been the mainstay in the automaker's hybrid lineup for years. Solid state and lithium air batteries have advantages over li-ion and NiMH batteries. They're smaller and use less expensive materials than li-ion, such as rare earth metals.

There are obvious benefits to solid-state batteries. The liquid electrolyte found in li-ion batteries is replaced with a solid material (hence the name), and solid-state packs are more compact and stable, allowing a higher voltage to be packed into a smaller space, Suzuki said. Toyota has been working on solid-state batteries for years and might be taking the lead over competitors such as Sakti3 and Planar Energy in the plug-in vehicle market.

With lithium air batteries, the lithium cathode used in li-ion batteries is replaced with material that interacts with oxygen. It offers much higher density than current li-ion batteries.

For Toyota, the goal is to make a battery that has an energy density approaching that of gasoline, Suzuki said, because li-ion batteries can only offer electric vehicles limited range because these batteries typically have an energy density only one-fiftieth that of a tank of gasoline. While they're still years away, solid-state or lithium-air batteries may provide the solution Toyota's been looking for.
Read More quarta-feira, 13 de março de 2013 0 comentários

Audi, Toyota land on MIT's list of 50 Most Disruptive CompaniesAudi, Toyota land on MIT's list of 50 Most Disruptive Companies


MIT Technology Review, a magazine all about innovation, has announced its list of the 50 most disruptive companies in 2013, and both Audi and Toyota made the cut. While the term "most disruptive" may carry a negative connotation in most uses (especially in the classroom), the acknowledgement in this case is an accolade, signifying that the company is at the forefront of its industry. In a nutshell, a disruptive company is a business whose innovations force other businesses to alter their strategic direction.

 Audi made the list for "pushing autonomous cars closer to fruition with a laser-scanning road detector that fits in a vehicle's front grille," and Toyota for "expanding its dominance of the hybrid-car market with its new plug-in version of the Prius." Click on the image above to be taken to the original graphic at MIT Technology Review, where clickable colored squares reveal information about each of the 50 winners, compiled from a variety of industries.
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Toyota GT 86

I'm not sure it's socially acceptable to admit to enjoying driving these days. It's a bit like saying you're into hare coursing. I'm afraid I do, though – like driving, that is (coursing I don't know – I've never tried it. I can't imagine I would. I like hares). And cars don't get much more enjoyable to drive than this one.
It's not the quickest, the cleverest or the flashiest. That's part of its brilliance. Too many sports cars these days have so much power, and massive fat tyres to keep them on the road, and all sorts of sophisticated electronics to help you keep control, that you may as well not be (in control). It's like driving by proxy.
Not so this one. A modest two-litre flat four boxer engine, a little under 200bhp, 151lb ft... sorry, I'm turning into a boy. Basically, it's not very, very powerful. But it's light, with a low centre of gravity, rear-wheel drive, beautifully balanced, precise, accurate. Oh, and those tyres – they're the same ones they put on a bloody Prius. Meaning you can drift a bit on the corners, if you so wished.
And there you have it, the old-fashioned pleasure of driving, Mr Toad style, machine connecting man to road. Poop poop. So maybe you won't get there quite as fast as the fat cats in their supercars. But you will arrive with just as big a smile on your face.
Bigger, in fact – Cheshire to their fat. Not only because you're more in touch with the road, but because bystanders aren't making the internationally recognisable sign for small penis at you as you pass. (I'm assuming these are male drivers; a woman in a supercar is something quite different, and absolutely acceptable).
Plus, you've spent a fraction of what they have. Grin per pound, this is about as high as it gets. Apart from a Subaru BRZ, perhaps, which is exactly the same car as this one, only ever so slightly more desirable because Subaru is a cooler brand than Toyota.
To return – neatly – to hare coursing. If the Ferraris and Porsches are the greyhounds, then the GT86 is the hare – more nimble and agile on the turns... Yeah, except that analogy doesn't really work because a Porsche or a Ferrari actually corners quicker, too, even if it may not feel like it, so the hare's going to be caught every time. That's no good.
OK, then, how about this: it's not just the steering on the GT86 that's brilliant, the brakes are, too. So if an actual hare ran into the road, chances are you'd be able to stop, or steer around it. There you go, everyone's happy, especially the hare.
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