CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Feb. 17 (UPI) -- U.S. researchers have developed a new type of lithium battery that could become a cheaper alternative to the batteries that power hybrid electric cars.
Until now, lithium batteries have not had the rapid charging capability or safety level needed for use in cars, according to researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Hybrid cars run on nickel metal hydride batteries, which power an electric motor and can rapidly recharge while the car is decelerating or standing still.
However, lithium nickel manganese oxide, could revolutionize the hybrid car industry -- a sector that has "enormous growth potential," says project leader Gerbrand Ceder.
The new material is more stable -- and thus safer -- than lithium cobalt oxide batteries, which are used to power small electronic devices like cell phones and laptop computers.
Scientists already knew that lithium nickel manganese oxide could store a lot of energy but the material took too long to charge to be commercially useful.
The findings are published in Science.
