Makita Batteries Are Receiving an LED Charge Indicator Upgrade I noticed something new and wonderful at the GIE Expo when we visited the Makita booth. No, it wasn’t the 18V Coffee Maker. I have to admit that I didn’t contain my excitement very well on that one though. No, it was the very obvious presence […]
Ridgid Makes the Long-Awaited Jump to Brushless Motors and Jumps Up in Battery Capacity Here at PTR, we thought for sure that the post-X4 tools were going to result in the Ridgid Gen5X Brushless line. We were a little disappointed when they came out as brushed – but with significant power increases over the X4. […]
With so many devices powered by USB, it’s probably both fortunate and timely that DeWalt announced a new dual-voltage 12V/20V Max USB Charger Power Source (model DCB090). The new DeWalt DCB090 USB Power Source is unique in that it works with all of the company’s 12V and 20V Max battery packs. You can charge two […]
Robert Bosch GmbH appears to be setting up a new lithium-ion plant in Eisenach, Germany. They are dubbing it a “pilot production line” and it seems to be geared towards making inroads into efficiencies and mass-production of newer, better lithium-ion battery cells and assemblies. The line is fast under way and should be yielding its […]
Self-healing li-ion batteries would mean a dramatic improvement in the battery’s ability to sustain itself through extended use. Lithium-ion batteries undergo cracking, deterioration, and electrochemical pulverization during the significant volume changes associated with the insertion and leaving of Li+ ions during charging and discharging. This damage accumulates over time and, as a result, the efficiency […]
Within the last two months, Nexeon (an Oxfordshire-based research group) produced a record-breaking 18650 Li-ion cells with a capacity of 3.2Ah using its very own silicon anode technology. These Nanoscoop Lithium ion batteries recharge in 1 Minute! The team came up with a nanostructure they are dubbing a “nanoscoop” – and it really does resemble an ice cream […]
There’s been a run on lithium-ion battery news this week and the latest is from Popular Science which explored the technology surrounding lithium-ion batteries in nano-scale applications. Apparently new DARPA-funded research (sounds similar to the crazy hippie organization, the DARMA Initiative, from Lost) could revolutionize portable power supplies, leading to lithium-ion batteries that are smaller […]
Hitachi announced this week that it had developed a prototype of a rechargeable lithium-ion battery cell that will double the typical useful life of the technology to more than 10 years. While Hitachi said the new technology will be aimed first at industrial batteries for electric vehicles and wind farms, these advancements are certain to […]
