Ross Dueber, CEO of Zinc Matrix Power, has two words for you: think zinc.
The Camarillo, California-based start-up is one of a number of companies that has been toiling away at a problem that's no longer obscure due to Dell's massive laptop battery recall: Lithium ion batteries can, under the right conditions, explode into flames.
"They (lithium ion batteries) contain a highly flammable liquid in a pressurised vessel. They have a fairly powerful oxidiser. You've got to have strict quality control in manufacturing," he said. "It's the only rechargeable battery technology that uses a flammable liquid."
By contrast, Zinc Matrix has come up with a silver zinc-based battery that can't explode, Dueber said. The materials inside the battery -- mostly zinc, zinc oxide and water -- aren't flammable. Notebooks running on these batteries, which will go into low volume production in early 2007, can last eight to 10 hours, he said, longer than lithium.
Lithium ion batteries, which came out in 1990, are the surly child prodigy of portable electronics. These batteries can hold far more energy than conventional rechargeable batteries and generally weigh less than traditional rechargeables. Notebook makers and cell phone manufacturers have used these properties to create fairly light devices that can run for several hours on a single battery charge.
Unfortunately, a short circuit inside a lithium ion battery can lead to what's known in the industry as a "runaway thermal reaction." The reaction can cause the battery case to melt and spew hot liquids, or explode due to pressure and heat. Injuries have been reported around the globe.
To make matters worse, manufacturers have continued to increase the energy density -- or the amount of energy the battery can hold -- of lithium ion batteries by thinning out separators (which keep the electrodes apart) and changing other components. These changes lead to longer run times -- something consumers are demanding -- but also raise the potential that something can go wrong.
"The root cause is more and more energy required in a limited volume. You aggravate the safety issues," said Rick Cooper, vice president of business development at PolyFuel, which makes membranes for direct methanol fuel cells.
For the past several years, venture capital firms have been putting money into start-ups promoting technologies that replace, or supplement lithium ion batteries. To date, most of the interest has been around trying to improve battery life and run time in portable electronics.
Cooper and others, however, have said that safety is now one of the primary concerns among hardware makers. In turn, safety could help spur adoption.
Many of these alternative technologies have also faced delays or not been adopted when expected. Most of the time, it's because early versions of the alternative technologies have not worked as well as lithium ion. Historically, for example, zinc batteries didn't recharge well.
Nonetheless, momentum, say these companies, is growing. MTI Micro Fuel Cells is producing fuel cell prototypes for Samsung. Zinc Matrix, meanwhile, has received US$32 million in venture funding since 1999. It is currently building a pilot manufacturing facility and has lined up Tyco Electronics to help it move to mass manufacturing.
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