Rising gasoline prices and enhanced consumer awareness of green has been the global automotive Latitude C640 industry to re-examine its power drive system, rechargeable lithium-ion batteries for hybrid electric vehicles has now become (HEV) application of technology come to the fore.
Analysts pointed out that the face of near-zero emissions from the point of view, hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) battery with 2015 sales of lithium is expected to more than 500 million U.S. dollars.

At present, Rockwood Holdings, Chile, Sociedad Quimicay Minera (SQM) and FMC Corporation is the world's largest manufacturer of lithium, the effectiveness of lithium to be due to a large number of new applications.

1. Car lithium-ion battery development prospects

Of lithium in lithium ion battery application is confirmed. The first phase of the cell phone applications, each cell need to use about 1 / 10 ounce of lithium carbonate. laptop battery The second stage is the application of portable computers, lithium carbonate need to use the mobile phone usage is about 10 times.

Plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) use of lithium batteries for laptop computers need to use lithium-lithium amount of 100 times.

Lithium-ion batteries is expected to be the performance of HEV to play a key plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) using the combustion engine and electric drive both systems. HEV, including plug-in hybrid system (PHEV), the system in use prior to combustion engines, because there is enough electricity for storage can be driven by battery power, a certain distance. In addition, the pure electric vehicle (EV) does not set the combustion engine, rely on battery-electric drives. Lithium-ion batteries is expected to enable the plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) price and performance with natural gas-powered cars comparable.

Although Nickel - Metal Hydride has been applied to most of the HEV batteries, but lithium-ion battery and the battery compared to chemical manufacturing, larger and smaller power. Toyota's Prius hybrid electric cars common to nickel - metal hydride battery-powered. Latitude C610 Toyota said that by 2010, hybrid sales of 1 million years.

Chemical manufacturers invest in plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) there is opportunity for development. Rockwood company has developed proprietary technology conductive lithium salts, such conductive lithium battery chemistry can help overcome some of the challenges. SQM with Europe, Japan, South Korea and the United States, the major manufacturer of cathode commercial alliance formed to develop automotive lithium-ion batteries.

However, the auto industry into the mass production of HEV are still in the initial stage, the amount of car batteries lithium is still very small. The strong growth in other end-user demand, as well as the right price, will continue to support lithium demand.

Bank of America, Kevin McCarthy, according to the forecast, HEV lithium battery sales will grow to 2015 by about 6 billion U.S. dollars. Analysis, HEV lithium there is more long-term development opportunities. It is estimated that by 2010 sales of approximately one million hybrid electric vehicles, will double annual sales by 2015. Bank of America, Kevin McCarthy expects 2015 operating income of lithium battery consumption will account for nearly half of pure electric vehicle batteries will be in 2007 the total amount of lithium is less than 1% increase in revenues by 2015 and 1 / 4.

Rockwood company in 2007 from the lithium carbonate, lithium metal and lithium compounds derived from the total operating Latitude C600 revenues of about 4.5 billion U.S. dollars. FMC's 2007 sales of 210 million U.S. dollars lithium. And Rockwood's similar to, FMC produced lithium carbonate and special common downstream lithium products. SQM is the world's leading manufacturer of lithium carbonate, which in 2007 came from lithium and lithium derivatives revenues of 179.8 million U.S. dollars.

Batteries, and medical end-users together accounted for about Rockwood's lithium supply of 40%. Analysts believe that the near term, the demand for lithium in the pharmaceutical sector will be mainly affected by strong demand for butyl lithium and other battery applications of lithium hydroxide, lithium carbonate and demand pull.

Battery lithium carbonate production of the consumption in HEV cases has shown a great demand there is no double-digit rate. In 2007 nearly 20% of demand growth is expected in the medium term will continue to be higher than 10% of the rate.

In addition to battery applications, Latitude CPX the rapid increase in the medium term are presented in the grease, lubricants lithium hydroxide, glass and glass-melting material with lithium carbonate, lithium carbonate and other air-conditioning.

With lithium-ion battery-powered HEV accelerate into the commercial market, the battery company Johnson Controls-Saft was in January 2007 in France, a large-scale production of the world's first HEV battery production plant, and has been with the Mercedes hybrid electric vehicle company signed Class the supply of lithium-ion battery contracts, Class hybrid electric vehicles in commercial production in early 2009. Japan's NEC Electronics, the annual production in 2009 will be 13000 lithium-ion batteries by 2010 expansion to 6.5 million units, to apply to the Nissan hybrid electric vehicles.

Some car manufacturers to use lithium-ion battery-powered hybrid electric vehicle program being developed. Tesla Motors has been the United States in March 2008 to begin production 2008 Tesla Roadster hybrid electric vehicles, we will launch the 2009 model. Toyota and Matsushita's joint venture Panasonic EV Energy Company in 2009 limited production vehicle with lithium-ion batteries in 2010, will shift to mass production.

A number of other lithium-ion battery manufacturers, including South Korea's LG Chemical Company, the Corporation and South Korea's Hyundai Motor Company has signed a contract with effect from July 2009 to the company Accent hybrid electric vehicle supply lithium-ion battery. Saturn's PHEV and General Motors Volt EV mass production in 2010. Sanyo Electric Company will begin production of 1.5 ~ 20000 / year lithium-ion battery for HEV use in 2011. Volkswagen's hybrid electric cars in 2010 using the Sanyo Electric Company Inspiron 2500 lithium-ion battery technology.

2009 lithium-ion rechargeable battery market was formally established. This is because in Japan and overseas car manufacturers have started in the passenger cars on the use of lithium-ion rechargeable battery. Domestic manufacturers in Japan, Toyota Motor, Fuji Heavy Industries, Mitsubishi Motors has decided to adopt, while in Europe and the United States, Daimler also said that adoption. In addition, Nissan, Germany, Audi, General Motors is also prepared to adopt in 2010.

Decided to hybrid (HEV) and electric vehicles (EV) performance of rechargeable batteries, the most of the most important changes will occur. Reason is that Toyota, Nissan, Japan's top automobile manufacturers have since introduced in 2009 with lithium-ion rechargeable battery models.

Objects involved in HEV, EV, plug-in hybrid (PHEV) and other fields. Toyota said it will start a subsidiary in 2009 - Panasonic EV Energy small batch production for the PHEV lithium-ion rechargeable battery, started mass production in 2010.

In 2000, "Tino Hybrid" style on the first lithium-ion rechargeable battery is equipped with Nissan, also in 2010 with mass production of lithium-ion rechargeable battery HEV and EV. HEV scheduled for rear-wheel-drive vehicles, the current transmission has been made public, as well as tap in the baggage compartment is equipped with a lithium-ion rechargeable battery. Inspiron 4100 The batteries will be Nissan and NEC, NEC Dong-Jin, a joint venture Automotive Energy Supply (AESC) provides.

In addition to Toyota, Nissan, other major vendors are also expected to use lithium-ion rechargeable battery. Fuji Heavy Industries, mass production scheduled in 2009 in order to "Plugin Stella Concept" for the prototype EV, Nissan will be the same car, using AESC manufactured batteries. In addition, Mitsubishi Motors will also be purchasing and GS Yuasa Corporation (GS Yuasa) such as a joint venture between Lithium Energy Japan (LEJ) batteries manufactured in 2009, mass production of EV "i MiEV".

Honda plans to HEV additional new models in 2009, and in 2010 in the "Fit" in additional HEV models, but has yet to show that in general the use of HEV lithium-ion rechargeable battery. However, the company in November 2008 in Japan began to rent out fuel cell hybrid vehicle "FCX Clarity" is equipped with lithium-ion rechargeable battery, replacing the capacitor has been used previously.

In the overseas manufacturers, the Volkswagen Group in Germany is scheduled for 2010 Audi listing HEV, which the lithium-ion rechargeable batteries, Sanyo Electric will be mass production from 2009. The General Motors decision to the HEV market in 2010, the lithium-ion rechargeable batteries will also be Hitachi Vehicle Energy (Hitachi Vehicle Energy) from the mass production by the end of 2009.

2. Lithium continuous expansion of production capacity

Rockwood, SQM, and FMC Lithium production companies accounted for about 3 / 4, some of China's lithium production of small-scale producers account for about 1 / 4. SQM produces about 35% of the global lithium carbonate supply. Rockwood Corporation,Inspiron 4000 through its specialty chemicals business unit Chemetall produces about 30% of the world's lithium carbonate, while the FMC's production accounts for about 5% ~ 10%.

In 2009, the world's lithium resources consumption of 8 million tons, is expected to five years later, the United States alone 10 million lithium-electric cars, the demand would consume 100,000 tons lithium resources. Since 2005, lithium prices soaring by more than 10 million yuan per ton in November 2009 rose to more than 60 million yuan per ton.

In 2008 the world's lithium production (as lithium carbonate equivalent) estimated at 8 million ton / year. The status quo of the global lithium carbonate industry, resource threshold high, capacity is highly concentrated. As of the end of 2008, the global lithium carbonate demand for a total of about 95,000 tons, a major international manufacturers have Chile's SQM, the United States and Germany, Chemtall total FMC annual capacity of 79,000 tons, accounting for 80% of global market share. Large-scale production of lithium carbonate as the enterprise must have reserves of lithium resources are more abundant in salt lake resources, mining rights, which makes the resources of the industry with higher barriers to entry; the other hand, the vast majority of the world's resources are high-magnesium salt low lithium-based , and from high-Mg low-lithium brine separation of lithium carbonate in the purification process technology is very difficult to master prior to these technologies is only a few hands of foreign companies, which makes lithium carbonate industry, but also provides many technical barriers. Therefore, lithium carbonate has created the industry's global oligopoly structure.

Lithium mainly from the three suppliers, "Lithium Triangle" (Argentina, Bolivia and Chile) to produce lithium brine deposits. SQM and the Rockwood companies from Chile's Salar de Atacama region's production of lithium, the advantage of lithium at high concentrations and evaporation rates high, in the production process can be using solar energy. Inspiron 8100 In addition to outside of South America, Rockwood companies are the U.S. Silver Peak, Nevada, brine produced by lithium.

FMC Corporation from Salar de Hombre Muerto in Argentina storage of brine produced lithium, a filtration process, filtering process faster but more costly than other processes.

Previously, Li Li-hui quarry sediments from the extract. Through this process, however, to produce, because the purity is low, require multiple extraction steps and is energy-intensive process. China is now only used from spodumene to produce a large number of lithium carbonate.

South America's storage capacity is growing. Inspiron 8200, Inspiron 8000 SQM company is the lithium carbonate production capacity from 3 million tons / year in the third quarter of 2008 expanded to about 4 million tons / year. If market demand is strong, it will be extended to be able to 6 million ton / year.

Is to use between the two electrodes of different metals to produce electrical potential difference, 312-0305 so that electron flow to generate electricity. Also known as non-battery is a kind of electro-chemical batteries, its electro-chemical reaction can not be reversed, that is, only the chemical energy conversion electricity, simply says that he is to fail to re-storing power, and the battery relative.
The chemical energy into electrical energy. Therefore, by definition, ordinary batteries, fuel cells can be called a galvanic cell. Galvanic cell composed of the basic requirement is: The two kinds of lively nature of different metal (or graphite) (Pt and graphite electrodes are inert, that does not by itself gain or loss electrons) connected with a wire inserted in the electrolyte solution. Current generation is due to oxidation and reduction reactions at two electrodes on the results. Under normal circumstances, the original battery, the more active metal so negative, less active metal so positive.laptop battery Cathode itself volatile oxidation of electrons, electron flow along the wire anode, cathode on the electrolyte solution is generally in the cation electron-reduction reaction occurs. In the original battery, the external circuit for the electronic conductivity, electrolyte solution for the ionic conductivity.
Galvanic cell primary battery of a chemical through the active substance in the redox reactions directly into electrical energy output device. Also known as chemical batteries. Due to various types of primary cells is poor reversibility of redox reactions, put finished after power-up can not be reused, it is also called a cell. It is usually from a positive electrode, negative electrode, electrolyte, separator, and shell composition can be made into various shapes and different sizes, easy to use. Is widely used in agriculture, industry, defense industry and communications, lighting, medical and other departments, and become a daily, radio, tape recorders, cameras, calculators, electronic watches,312-0306 toys, hearing aids and other common electrical power supply. Primary cells are generally governed by negative active material (such as zinc, cadmium, magnesium, lithium, etc.) and the positive active material (such as manganese, mercury, sulfur dioxide, carbon fluoride, etc.) are divided into zinc-manganese batteries, zinc-air batteries, zinc-silver batteries, zinc - mercury batteries, magnesium manganese batteries, lithium fluoride-carbon battery, lithium sulfur dioxide batteries. Zinc-manganese battery production the most, often divided into ammonium chloride according to type and zinc chloride electrolyte type, in accordance with its paste-type isolation layer is divided into cells and low-polar battery. With potassium hydroxide as the electrolyte,F5136 zinc-manganese batteries, because of its negative (zinc), the structure different from other zinc-manganese battery is customary to make a separate category, known as the alkaline zinc-manganese batteries, referred to as alkali-manganese battery [1], commonly known as the alkaline batteries.
The original battery is a class to make chemical energy directly into electricity for power devices. Of the original battery after discharge continuous or intermittent discharge can not be reverse-current charging method so that the two electrode active material back to the initial state, Inspiron 710m that is, electrode active material can only use once. It is also known as disposable batteries.