A123Systems, a start-up in Watertown, Mass., has created a powerful, safe, long-lived battery.
To date, all-electric vehicles have failed because their batteries were inadequate. Rechargeable lithium batteries have been thought impractical for transportation because they are insufficiently powerful and might, if pierced, jarred or overheated, explode or burst into flames.
A123Systems batteries are different. Yet-Ming Chiang, a professor of materials science and engineering at M.I.T. and a co-founder of A123Systems, described their advantages: "Used in a hybrid vehicle, our batteries deliver faster acceleration than any other batteries of the same size," Professor Chiang said. "And the chemical stability of the cathode material greatly improves safety as well as extending battery life."
A123Systems, a privately held venture, has raised more than $102 million in funding from a variety of investors including Sequoia Capital, Motorola and General Electric. It has 250 employees in China, Taiwan, South Korea and the United States. Apart from its developmental work with G.M., it manufactures the batteries that drive Black & Decker and DeWalt professional power tools. (Source: Jason Pontin, The New York Times, Mar11, 2007).