lead-acid batteries

Johnson Controls International’s (JCI) soon-to-be-sold Power Solutions business, is joining forces with Toshiba to manufacture lithium-ion batteries that will be “paired” with lead-acid battery technology as part of dual-battery systems for carmakers.

JCI, which has agreed to sell Power Solutions to US and Canadian investment firms, said the partners will develop and make the lithium-ion batteries at JCI’s Holland plant in Michigan.

Indian lead producer and exporter Gravita has confirmed plans to expand its lead-acid battery scrap processing operations overseas with two new facilities in Africa.

Gravita said it has acquired land for a plant in Ghana and “construction activities are in process” with a view to starting operations by March 2019.

Lead-acid battery technology is to undergo a “high-tech makeover” under a research agreement between members of the Advanced Lead Acid Battery Consortium (ALABC) and the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory.

Fourteen ALABC members have signed up for the science programme, which Argonne said would focus the lab’s “resources and expertise on improving the performance of lead batteries, to assist the industry in meeting market demands for existing applications and for new applications”.

The nine full members of the programme include Crown Battery Manufacturing Company, Doe Run Resources Corporation, East Penn Manufacturing Company, EnerSys, Exide Technologies, Johnson Controls, NorthStar Battery Company, RSR Technologies and the Trojan Battery Company. The five associate members are Superior Graphite, Microporous, Cabot Corporation, Borregard Lignotech and Advanced Battery Concepts.