The lithium–titanate battery is a type of rechargeable battery, which has the advantage of being faster to charge than other lithium-ion batteries. Some analysts speculate that lithium–titanate batteries will power electric cars of the future.[1]
A lithium–titanate battery is a modified lithium-ion battery that uses lithium-titanate nanocrystals on the surface of its anode instead of carbon. This gives the anode a surface area of about 100 square meters per gram, compared with 3 square meters per gram for carbon, allowing electrons to enter and leave the anode quickly. This makes fast recharging possible and provides high currents when needed.[2] The disadvantage is that lithium-titanate batteries have a lower voltage and capacity than conventional lithium-ion battery technologies.[3]
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Altairnano produce lithium–titanate batteries under the "Nanosafe" line, mainly for battery electric vehicles. Some vehicle manufacturers which announced plans to use Altairnano batteries includes Lightning Car Company, which plan to use them for Lightning GT, an all-electric sports car,[4][5] Phoenix Motorcars, in its electric sport-utility vehicles,[6] and Proterra, in its all-electric EcoRide BE35 vehicle, a lightweight 35-foot bus.[7]
Altairnano has also deployed their lithium–titanate energy storage systems for electric grid ancillary services[8] and in various military applications.[9]
Toshiba released a lithium–titanate battery, dubbed Super Charge Ion Battery (SCiB).[10][11] The battery is designed to offer 90% charge capacity in just 10 minutes.[12]
SCiB batteries are used in the Schwinn Tailwind electric bike.[13] Toshiba has also demonstrated its use as a laptop battery.[14] Toshiba SCiB batteries are also used in Mitsubishi's i-MiEV and Minicab MiEV[15] electric vehicles, and Honda will use them in its Fit EV model to be launched in summer 2012.[16]