So Toyota is going to use Lithium Ion Batteries in future Prius.
http://www.motoring.co.za/?fArticle...=751&fSetId=381
"The system replaces the existing Prius battery with an advanced
lithium ion battery and can be charged at home using a standard
domestic power socket."
This is the same type of battery that explodes because too much power
is packed inside in a laptop. Imagine your Prius exploding like that.
Dell: Laptop Batteries Recall
World’s largest PC maker recalls more than 4 million notebook
batteries.
August 14, 2006
In the largest recall in the history of the U.S. consumer electronics
industry, Dell said Monday it is voluntarily recalling 4.1 million
notebook computer batteries. The move comes after reports that a
number of Dell laptops have burst into flames.
The news sent Dell shares down 1.41 percent to $20.94 in after-hours
trading, even as Dell said in a statement that the recall would not
have a “material adverse effect” on its finances.
The recall comes at a bad time for the Round Rock, Texas, computer
maker. The company’s shares have fallen 42 percent to $21.24 from
$36.64 over the past year as it fights off fresh competition from
rivals Hewlett-Packard and Lenovo.
Meanwhile, reports of Dell laptops bursting into flames have dogged
the company. In July, firefighters were called after a laptop burst
into flames at the offices of Tetra Pak in Vernon Hills, Illinois.
Photos of a Dell laptop bursting into flames at a conference in Osaka,
Japan, in June were widely circulated on the Internet.
Dell has had a number of very highly visible stories, and I think that
played significantly into them taking proactive action,” said Crawford
Del Prete, senior vice president for research at IDC.
However, manufacturers of everything from laptops to cell phones and
MP3 players could be vulnerable to similar incidents.
One of the byproducts of doing the AC to DC conversion and charging
batteries is heat, and a lot of heat is dissipated and these systems
are getting smaller and smaller and smaller,” Del Prete said. “The
heat has to go somewhere.”
Info-Tech analyst Carmi Levi said the same thing in June (see Laptop
Fire Brings Flashpoint), though he noted that Dell isn't the only
maker whose notebooks are increasingly more combustible.
[One Apple model] was known for getting pretty hot—it “ironed” out the
creases in a gentleman’s pants,” Mr. Levy said.
Yet battery safety and thermal efficiency—and problems therein—aren't
always related.
One cannot equate or make a general assumption that battery failures
are caused by thermal inefficiency,” Fujitsu-Siemens spokeswoman Amy
Fletcher said in July.
However, this could open up a lot of eyes among government regulators
over systems design, Del Prete said. “People are going to take a look
at this from a more holistic standpoint all the way back to the
design.
The move affects a wide range of Dell machines, including many of
Dell’s Latitude, Inspiron, Precision models. The recall includes
batteries sold both on their own and as part of laptop computers
between April 1, 2004 and July 18, 2005. The Dell-branded lithium-ion
batteries used cells manufactured by Sony.
Customers should contact Dell to determine if their notebook computer
battery is part of the recall, Dell said in a statement. The company
has set up a web site,
www.dellbatteryprogram.com, to handle questions
about the recall.
Dell advised customers whose laptops are affected to turn the computer
off, eject the battery, and use the AC adapter and power cord to power
the system until a new battery can be shipped to them.
http://www.redherring.com/Article.a...ector=Computing
Will future Prius explode like a Dell laptop Lithium Ion battery? YES
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