"David Roden (Akron OH USA)" wrote:
> <snip>
> I believe that where NiMH is concerned, economy of scale would have arrived
> by now if California had stuck to its original timetable instead of backing
> down. Saft, for one, had plans to build an NiMH plant in Georgia, but
> shelved them when the original EV goal was chucked.
<unsnip>
I am a big fan of advanced batteries, but I am yet to see a mature NiMH
battery pack that weighs more than a few pounds. Or a cell that weighs
more than a few ounces. I can't count how many failed when I was at my
last job, between thermal or depth of discharge failures. And I am not
sure that even the small mass produced celly are truly reliable yet.
Anyone who has owned a NiMH powered laptop or drill or radio controlled
car/boat/plane knows this. Laptops have moved on to Lithium Ion and many
drills have stepped back to NiCd. Like Makita for example.
EV folks will pull over and bypass a smoking 90Ah NiMH cell on the side
of the road on the drive to work, but John/Jane Doe the consumer won't.
I would love for NiMH to work, and I think it is close, but it has been
close for a while and it just isn't "here" yet.
Seth
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vze3v25q@verizondotnet
