Breakthrough In Batteries?

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A Texas company says it can make a new ultracapacitor power system to replace electrochemical batteries and have up to 10 times the power.

A secretive Texas startup developing what some are calling a "game changing" energy-storage technology broke its silence this week. It announced that it has reached two production milestones and is on track to ship systems this year for use in electric vehicles.
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I don't know that much about car parts, but for a car battery, does more power also mean longer battery life? I'd be more concerned about how long the battery will last rather than how powerful it is.

Unless of course I'm powering a stretched Hummer limo.
 
Don't mess with Texas. It will electricute you with this new battery :p
 
When I see the actual ratings when I can pick it up on the store shelves I will believe it... otherwise I will bank it under the car companies who claims that they can produce a 100+ mpg hybrid... but never see a car from them.

Another thing I'd worry about is cost, reliability, enviromentally, and longevity.
 
BarneyGumble said:
In answer to that comment - Tesla Motors
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I'm quite aware of that company and car. In fact, I've seen the car in person.


Now when you want to deal with a near to 100k price tag, then more power to you. A car less than half it's price burning gasoline can cream it, so it's nothing worth noting. By the time you paid for the gas of the lifetime of that car you still wouldn't be close to the cost premuim that you'd face on an electric, mind you the added expenses of having an electric car.

When you compare apples to apples, then I'll take notice, otherwise I still have yet to see this 100+ mpg car.
 
BarneyGumble said:
Just because you havn't "seen" it doesn't mean it's not coming.
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Space ships are coming, Laser guns are coming, Star wars is coming.

With that attitude, everything is coming...

With that said, let me jump off my quantum computer and wisk away in my flying car to mars for a quick coffee stop.

My saying was more of an analogy, not something that you have to go with "OMG U LIAR!$# You should see this links it provez you wrongz!!$$"
 
If it's anywhere near as good as they claim it could be a revolutionary product. An electric car would actually be a real alternative to a gas powered car and it would vastly implove all things that use batteries. But they have to prove themselves in the real world first. Until then it's a bunch of talk and lab experiments with little practical application.
 
wtiger said:
If it's anywhere near as good as they claim it could be a revolutionary product. An electric car would actually be a real alternative to a gas powered car and it would vastly implove all things that use batteries. But they have to prove themselves in the real world first. Until then it's a bunch of talk and lab experiments with little practical application.
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Exactly.
 
I think part of the problem is the demand for such products. If there was greater demand for 100mpg hybrids or electrics, we would see them sooner and at lower prices. Hybrids are an interim solution anyway. Hydrogen is the future of consumer transportation. But again, that technology is limited to talk and lab experiments at the moment.

Maybe this company is onto something. But the market will decide.
 
BarneyGumble said:
If there was greater demand for 100mpg hybrids or electrics, we would see them sooner and at lower prices.
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Unfortunately our country is obsessed with oil. And you know oil company lobbyists are doing everything they can to block funds and support for alternative fuels research.
 
GJSNeptune said:
I don't know that much about car parts, but for a car battery, does more power also mean longer battery life? I'd be more concerned about how long the battery will last rather than how powerful it is.

Unless of course I'm powering a stretched Hummer limo.
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from TFA: Ultracapacitors have many advantages over traditional electrochemical batteries. Unlike batteries, "ultracaps" can completely absorb and release a charge at high rates and in a virtually endless cycle with little degradation.

So the answer to how long they last would be ... longer than anything currently available.
The best answer would be for them to last the life of the car. There's no way I'm shelling out $50k for a car that I'll have to spend $15k on for new batteries every 3 years.
 
To ship this year.... hmm looks like we will not have to wait long to see.

With the ultra fast charge time of a Cap it would mean alot if they work as described. Devices could be charged in seconds instead of hours.
 
If this technology pans out, lets hope big oil/energy leave it alone. If it is percieved as a threat to the trillions of dollarsof profit left to be had from remaining fossil fuels in the ground, then EEStore could go the way of the dinosaur also...:eek:
 
Did they say anything about cost?

Cause you know the day they release batteries that last 10 times as long is the same day that battery prices go up 10 fold.
 
I am now going to invest all of my money in said company based on the potential implied in said press release.
 
i'm still waiting on those fuel cell batteries that supposed to power your cellphone for months and laptop for days on a single charge. i think the military got some of those.
 
Would be nice, but if there's a shortage or somethin', I'd rather them have 'em than me.
 
Ultra capacity better be ultra safe. I pity the fool who foolishly messes with large capacitor.
 
kmeson said:
Ultra capacity better be ultra safe. I pity the fool who foolishly messes with large capacitor.
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Oh ye of little faith. Just look at how much the powers that be have been able to increase the capacity of portable computer batteries over the last few years. And they are, of course, entirely safe and recall free. *cough*

I shouldn't be too concerned that they will be hurtling toward each other at 100 mph, either.
 
wtiger said:
If it's anywhere near as good as they claim it could be a revolutionary product. An electric car would actually be a real alternative to a gas powered car and it would vastly implove all things that use batteries. But they have to prove themselves in the real world first. Until then it's a bunch of talk and lab experiments with little practical application.
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Indeed. I thought this part was interesting: "Nonetheless, the company has some solid backing. Its board has attracted Morton Topfer, former vice chairman of Dell and mentor to Michael Dell.

The company is also backed by Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, a venture-capital powerhouse that has an impressive track record: it made early and highly successful bets on Google, Amazon.com, and Sun Microsystems, among others. Whether EEStor can translate that success to the energy sector remains to be seen."

At least funding won't be a problem. Maybe they know something we don't ;)
 
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