A123 Systems has worked with buffering chemistries to reduce the volatility of lithium batteries for the last decade. Solid Power Inc. has taken a set of interesting new technologies to make batteries more energy dense and safer. The two companies are combining efforts to make a more powerful, less-volatile battery, according to recent press releases. A123 produces nanophosphate (lithium iron phosphate – LiFePO4) and ultraphosphate batteries. Their nanophosphate batteries are used in Porsche’s 919 hybrid, a LeMans Prototype (LMP1) endurance racer that was outright winner of the event this year. They also power Eva Hakansson’s Killajoule and Bill Dube’s Killacycle – both record-holding electric motorcycles. Their Ultraphosphate line is designed to work at low voltages and low temperatures, including 48-Volt …
OOPs!… She Did It Again! 270 MPH for Eva
Eva Håkansson not only drives her Killajoule racing sidecar at hellacious speeds, but built it, wired the battery pack and now campaigns it with a five-person crew – including herself and her husband Bill Dube’. Over the Labor Day weekend, she topped 240 mph in her little bullet. Not content with only four miles per minute, she and Bill returned for even more speed on September 13. Business Insider reported, “But Håkansson and Dube knew their creation could go even faster. So last week, they returned to the Bonneville and upped the ante even more by hitting a whopping 270.224 mph. ‘The computer model showed a possible maximum speed of ~270 mph,’ Håkansson wrote in her blog. ‘For the first time ever, practice …
What Did You Do Over the Labor Day Weekend?
KillaJoule is the world’s fastest electric motorcycle with a top speed of 241 mph (388 km/h) so far. About 80 percent of this sleek bullet is the design and work product of co-owner and driver Eva Håkansson, who has graced the stage at two Electric Aircraft Symposiums, the last appearance with her husband and crew chief, Bill Dube’. Their web site explains, “KillaJoule is really eco-activism in disguise. The only purpose of this 19 foot, 400 horsepower, sleek, sexy motorcycle is to show that eco-friendly doesn’t mean slow and boring.” Over the Labor Day weekend, Eva lowered her petite frame (she’s about five feet tall) into the cockpit of her speedy sidecar to break her old world record and set …