battery

Driven by fears of laptops and cell phones spontaneously bursting into flames, the U.S. government this year banned checking loose lithium batteries in luggage on flights. But that won't be an issue if Nanoexa has its way.

The company is taking a closer look at lithium-ion batteries to design a better, more stable breed. It's eyeing the growing energy storage market, especially for batteries used in hybrid and electric cars.

Nanoexa's software examines the ingredients of batteries at the atomic level. Computer modeling scrutinizes the contents, such as lithium, cobalt, and nickel, to determine the safest … Read more

If Simbol Mining's plans work out, within a decade it will deliver one-fourth of the world's increasing demand for lithium, used in batteries of hybrid and electric cars without creating waste or pollution.

The start-up eventually aims to mine more than 100,000 tons of lithium carbonate each year from geothermal sources. That's more than the current annual market for the compound; the company expects demands for it to quintuple by 2013.

Current mining methods won't provide enough for the future need for lithium-ion batteries, according to Meridian International Research.

Geothermal power plants bring silica, lithium, … Read more

Beginning January 1, new Department of Transportation rules about lithium and lithium ion batteries in checked and carry-on baggage in airplanes supposedly went into effect. The announcement generated some fevered commentary at the time. This was in part because the rules were in the form of government writing commonly known as bureaucratese, leading a lot of people to think that they were far more onerous than they in fact are. (I discussed the new rules in an earlier posting.)

Well, I recently returned from a trip to California and there's no evidence that the new restrictions are being enforced … Read more

Some conflicting accounts coming out of the Web-o-sphere on Tuesday about Apple's revamped MacBook Pro laptops. At the heart of the controversy are reports that the new 15- and 17-inch Pro models have taken a nosedive on battery life, despite the inclusion of allegedly power-saving Intel Penryn processors.

Both Ars Technica and Gizmodo pointed out that Apple's own numbers on how long the battery should last in a 17-inch MacBook Pro have changed with the new models--going from more than 5 hours to only 4.5 hours.

There are actually a couple of different things going on here, … Read more

Ick! Did I actually just write a headline with the words "disposable" and "battery"?! Let's see...yep, I did. But before you get your environmentalist dander up, consider: one, I recycle; two, I use compact fluorescent lightbulbs, and three, I have a relevant story to share.

About three years ago, at a CES show in Las Vegas, a PR flack handed me a Cellboost disposable battery for my Treo smartphone. "You never know when you might need it," she winked.

Flash-forward to three weeks ago, when my phone (it's a Centro now, … Read more

Teens may have a better understanding of privacy issues than the adults around them. Unfortunately, when you are a high school student, your personal judgment can still be challenged by an unsympathetic principal.

The Raleigh News & Observer reports that at Cedar Ridge High School in Hillsborough North Carolina, more than 300 juniors were given the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB). The military provides and administers the tests without charge, and in return the scores and students' contact information are sent to military branch recruiters and the school.

Cedar Ridge Principal Gary Thornburg was willing to sign on to this deal to get access to what he views as a valuable career assessment tool. There is supposed to be an opt-out procedure, but three students who refused to take the test were sent to the in-school suspension room to take it--not as discipline, according to Thornburg, but because the in-school suspension teacher was available to supervise them while other students were taking the test. Sounds like a blatantly disingenuous answer to me. In my experience as a student and teacher, when you send students to in-school suspension, it is going to feel like a punishment and be perceived that way by others. Surely their well-equipped media center could have handled three students for independent study.… Read more

One of the nice things about using a notebook is that if there's a sudden power outage, you won't instantly lose your work. Desktop users aren't so lucky, which is why it's essential to plug everything into a battery backup (aka uninterruptible power supply). If the lights go out, you'll still have a few minutes in which to save your work and power down the machine safely.

Best Buy has a CyberPower battery backup on sale for $29.99. It includes six wide-spaced outlets, all of them surge-protected and three of them powered by the … Read more

JOBO introduced today its Energy Premio line of replacement rechargeable batteries, designed specifically for use with digital SLR's, compact digital cameras and camcorders. Sixty of the most common battery models will be available for 400 popular camera models. The JOBO batteries are packaged with an easy-to-match color-coding system, making it easy for consumers and retailers to find the right replacement battery for their digital cameras or camcorders. JOBO Premio batteries do not have a memory effect, are high current capable and quick charge capable. They provide a constant capacity across many charging cycles, 300 to 500 depending on usage. … Read more

Correction 10:35 a.m. PST: This blog initially misidentified the prime minister of Israel. He is Ehud Olmert. It also misidentified the person whose speech can be found on the Project Better Place Web site--it is by Shai Agassi--and as such an earlier version of this post also incorrectly attributed a quote from that speech.

Renault-Nissan, the government of Israel, and an electric charging station start-up founded by Shai Agassi are mounting an effort to make electric cars part of ordinary life in Israel in the next decade.

Project Better Place, Agassi's organization, will try to build 500,… Read more