Better grid-scale battery under development

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Better grid-scale battery under development

• New batteries could reshape renewable energy
  storage on grid

The key to successfully incorporating renewables
onto the power grid is having a place to store
it. Planar stacked sodium beta (planar Na-ß)
batteries may offer a simple and low-cost way to
store renewable energy. Scientists from
EaglePicher Technologies and the Department of
Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
have kicked off a three-year project to develop,
build and test planar Na-ß battery modules. While
existing sodium-beta batteries are currently a
promising technology, the batteries use thick
tubular electrolytes that are unreliable and
expensive. The radical new planar, stacked
architectures can achieve better performance at
lower operating temperatures, thereby offering
better reliability. In addition, the batterys
inexpensive construction materials and low-cost
manufacturing techniques could make it a more
affordable opportunity for investors and
manufacturers.
The battery modules form basic building blocks
that can be put together in a system capable of
providing up to few megawatts of power, or enough
electricity to power hundreds of households. The
project also aims to establish the foundations
for a viable planar Na-ß battery manufacturing
industry in the U.S. DOE's ARPA-E awarded the
EaglePicher Technologies and PNNL team more than
7.2 million (plus 1.8 million matching fund
from EPT) for this project in October 2009.
The team kicked off the project in late January.
Contacts Annie HaasPacific Northwest National
Laboratory509-375-3732 or Anne.Haas_at_pnl.gov Dave
Lucero EaglePicher Technologies,
LLC719-330-8018 or Dave.Lucero_at_eaglepicher.com
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About EaglePicher EaglePicher Technologies, LLC,
is a leading producer of batteries and energetic
devices for the defense, space and commercial
industries, and provides the most experience and
broadest capability in battery electrochemistry
of any battery supplier in the United States.
EaglePicher Technologies offers a wide range of
battery technology including thermal, nickel
hydrogen, lithium carbonmonofluoride, lithium
thionyl chloride, lithium manganese dioxide,
lithium sulfur dioxide, lithium ion, reserve
lithium oxyhalide, custom battery assemblies and
silver zinc batteries. It also provides other
energy products and pyrotechnic devices for the
defense industry, as well as advanced battery
chargers and other power solutions for business,
industrial and recreational applications. On
January 29, 2010 OM Group, Inc. acquired
EaglePicher Technologies, LLC the wholly owned
subsidiary of EaglePicher Corporation. For more
information, visit the company's Web site at
http//www.eaglepicher.com/. About Pacific
Northwest National Laboratory Pacific Northwest
National Laboratory is a Department of Energy
Office of Science national laboratory where
interdisciplinary teams advance science and
technology and deliver solutions to America's
most intractable problems in energy, national
security and the environment. PNNL employs 4,650
staff, has a 954 million annual budget, and has
been managed by Ohio-based Battelle since the
lab's inception in 1965. Follow PNNL on Facebook,
Linked In and Twitter.