Last week the secretive Texas-based company EEStor issued a press release indicating that its proprietary modified barium titanate powder achieved a permittvity of 22,500. EEStor has been working for years to develop a new form of energy storage material that has properties of both a battery and an ultracapacitor. They have proposed by using alumina -coated barium titanate powder screen printed in layers that can be inexpensively mass produced into energy storage devices that have 10 times the energy density as lithium-ion batteries at a fraction of the size and weight,with a functionally infinite lifetime.
If this technology worked, it would revolutionize energy storage. Canadian EV maker Zenn Motor Cars has an exclusive agreement to use these devices in small electric cars up to 1500 kg, and have stated that as soon as they receive working EESUs will put them in highway capable cars called ZENN Citys. In fact the press release shot Zenn's stock up nearly 50% as they are actually a minority owner of EEStor as well.
Last week's permittivity results suggested that the devices could hold a large amount of energy, but unclear was whether that would hold true over a wide range of voltages and temperatures, or if it would leak current. Further no working prototype has been demonstrated.
A brand new press release update has just been issued by EEStor confirming that the tests took place over a temperature range of -20 and 65 degrees centigrade and used hot-pressed dielectric layer composition-modified barium titanate powders "and their production line."
Now we're one more baby step closer to the holy grail of batteries. Or are we?
Source (EEStor)
