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Dr. Bortrum
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https://www.gofundme.com/s3h2w8 |
08/22/2007
Not Ready for Prime time
This will be another in my series of very short columns occasioned by the demands of care giving for my wife after her back surgery four weeks ago. I’ve gotten the laundry gig down very well but the “cooking”, or what passes for the term, is a problem. Keeping track of pain medications prescribed by three different doctors also proves to require some degree of attention. Hopefully, an MRI performed yesterday will provide a clue as to the source of my wife’s sciatic pain.
There’s been a major pain in the world of lithium-ion batteries, as we’ve discussed in past columns. The recalls of thousands or millions of these batteries continues and more than one manufacturer seems affected by production problems leading to fires or explosions of batteries in computer applications. Even so, we mentioned a couple of weeks ago that a hybrid train in Japan was scheduled to be in operation this month with lithium- ion batteries riding on top of the train. The hybrid train was inspired by Toyota’s success with its hybrid Prius automobile.
Now Brian Trumbore has called my attention to an article by Norihiko Shirouzu in the August 9 Wall Street Journal. The article says that Toyota had been planning to launch a number of different model hybrid cars using lithium-ion batteries. The launches were apparently scheduled to begin next year but purportedly the plans have now been put on hold or delayed in view of all the problems with these lithium batteries in the computer world. So, it will continue to be nickel-metal hydride battery that helps power the various hybrid autos on the market today.
Whereas Toyota reportedly planned to use the compound lithium cobalt oxide in its hybrid vehicles, GM may be considering other compounds in the phosphate category. The phosphate materials have been the objects of considerable research and development and are considered more stable and less likely to catch fire or explode than the cobalt oxide compound.
Regardless of which material is used as the cathode material, I worry that the problem with at least the Sony lithium-ion batteries has reportedly been small chards of metal that result in short circuits. Regardless of the cathode material, the shorts can ignite the flammable organic solvent(s) in the battery’s electrolyte, which in turn causes the fire or explosion. Perhaps the design of larger automotive lithium-ion batteries can be made such that the likelihood of any metal particles being introduced is negligible. Otherwise, I’m not going to be comfortable with a hybrid car with other than the nickel-metal hydride batteries, which to my knowledge, have been relatively free of any similar problems.
Well, back to my care giving. Hopefully, I’ll soon get back to considering more monumental topics; for example, the recent discovery of the collision of several huge galaxies to form a humongous super galaxy. Were Carl Sagan alive, he would have been able to talk about billions and billions and billions of stars in one big clump.
Allen F. Bortrum
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