Development of advanced nickel metal hydride batteries for electric and hybrid vehicles

Nickel/metal hydride (Ni/MH) batteries have emerged as the battery technolo gy of choice for electric vehicles. GM Ovonic L.L.C., a joint venture betwe en General Motors and Ovonic Battery was established in 1994 to manufacture and commercialize Ovonic's proprietary Ni/MH batteries for electric and hy brid vehicle applications. GM Ovonic is developing a 'family of batteries a imed at product improvement and cost reduction. Current performance of thes e new battery designs is described, as well as projections for future impro vements. In addition, advances in cell and battery power have allowed furth er product diversification into cells and batteries specifically designed f or a range of hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs). (C) 1999 Elsevier Science S. A. All rights reserved.