Toshiba promises ‘game-changing’ battery for 2019

Toshiba has started work on the next generation of lithium-ion battery technology, which it reckons will be capable of giving a compact electric vehicle a range of 200 miles (320km) after six minutes of ultra-rapid charging. It says it will be ready for practical applications in 2019.

The battery is based on the SCiB technology that Toshiba has been developing since 2008. For the new battery Toshiba has developed a titanium niobium oxide anode material that has double the lithium storage capacity by volume of the graphite-based anodes generally used in lithium-ion batteries.

“We are very excited by the potential of the new titanium niobium oxide anode and the next-generation SCiB,” said Dr Osamu Hori, director of corporate research & development centre at Toshiba Corporation.

“Rather than an incremental improvement, this is a game changing advance that will make a significant difference to the range and performance of EV. We will continue to improve the battery’s performance and aim to put the next-generation SCiB into practical application in fiscal year 2019.”