Ovonic Battery Company, Inc.

Basf Corporation

Fdk Corporation

Ovonic Hydrogen Systems LLC

Texaco Ovonic Battery Systems, LLC

Taihei Ouchi

Kwo Young

Michael A Fetcenko

Stanford R Ovshinsky

Shigekazu Yasuoka

Diana F Wong

Jean Nei

Kwo-hsiung Young

Melanie Reinhout

Benjamin Reichman

William C Mays

Baoquan Huang

Feng Li

John M Koch

Jun Su Im

Diana Wong

A multi-phase hydrogen storage alloy comprising a hexagonal CeNiphase and a hexagonal PrCophase, where the CeNiphase abundance is &#x2265;30 wt % and the PrCophase abundance is &#x2265;8 wt % and where the alloy comprises a mischmetal where Nd in the mischmetal is &#x3c;50 at % or a multi-phase hydrogen storage alloy comprising one or more rare earth elements, a hexagonal CeNiphase and a hexagonal PrCophase, where the CeNiphase abundance is from about 30 to about 72 wt % and the PrCophase abundance is &#x2265;8 wt % have improved electrochemical performance. The alloys are useful in an electrode in a metal hydride battery, a fuel cell or a metal hydride air battery.

Hydrogen storage multi-phase alloys

Laves phase-related BCC metal hydride alloys historically have limited electrochemical capabilities. Provided are processes of activating these alloys to produce hydrogen storage materials with greater than 200 mAh/g capacities and commonly much greater than 300 mAh/g capacities. The processes include cooling the alloy during hydrogenation to reduced temperatures or by subjecting the materials to significantly increased hydrogen pressures. Temperatures in many embodiments do not exceed 300&#xb0; C. By decreasing the temperature or increasing the hydrogen pressure the phase structure of the material is optimized to increase a synergistic effect between multiple phases in the resulting alloy thereby greatly improving the electrochemical capacities.

Activation of laves phase-related BCC metal hydride alloys for electrochemical applications

A structurally and compositionally disordered electrochemically active alloy material is provided with excellent capacity and cycle life, as well as superior high-rate dischargeability. The alloy employs a disordered AB+x(AB) structure, wherein x is a number between 1 and 4. This crystal structure combined with a tailored amount of electrochemically active ABsecondary phase material produces superior electrochemical properties.

Disordered metal hydride alloys for use in a rechargeable battery

Electrochemical and gas phase hydrogen storage alloy compositions that provide superior performance, especially at low temperature, and excellent cycle life characteristics. The alloys of this invention are ABtype alloys that include a cycle life enhancement element and a low Co concentration. The preferred cycle life enhancement elements include Zr and Si. The cycle life enhancement elements increase the cycle life of the instant alloys by reducing the pulverization of alloy particles upon repeated cycles of charging-discharging or hydriding-dehydriding. The alloys are characterized by low hysteresis on cycling, where hysteresis is measured in terms of mass concentration difference, a parameter related to the activation energy associated with the incorporation of hydrogen into the alloy. The instant alloys are designed to have a low activation energy for hydrogen incorporation and as a result, provide low hysteresis and a more uniform concentration of absorbed hydrogen within the material. As a result, differential lattice expansion effects associated with the absorption of hydrogen are minimized and the tendency for particle pulverization on cycling is minimized. Alloys having a low Co concentration and long cycle life are thus provided for.

Hydrogen storage alloys having improved cycle life and low temperature operating characteristics

A reversible hydrogen storage alloy for electrochemical and thermal hydrogen storage having excellent kinetics and improved performance at low temperatures and excellent cycle life. The compositions of the hydrogen storage alloy is modified to achieve excellent performance at low temperatures and excellent cycle life via non-stoichiometric hydrogen storage alloy compositions.

A BCC phase hydrogen storage alloy capable of storing approximately 4.0 wt. % hydrogen and delivering reversibly up to 3.0 wt. % hydrogen at temperatures up to 110&#xb0; C. The hydrogen storage alloys also possess excellent kinetics whereby up to 80% of the hydrogen storage capacity of the hydrogen storage alloy may be reached in 30 seconds and 80% of the total hydrogen storage capacity may be desorbed from the hydrogen storage alloy in 90 seconds. The hydrogen storage alloys also have excellent stability which provides for long cycle life.

Hydrogen storage materials having excellent kinetics, capacity, and cycle stability

A hydrogen storage composite material having a Mg&#x2014;Ni based alloy with a coating of a catalytically active metal deposited on at least a portion of a surface of said Mg&#x2014;Ni based alloy. The coating is less than about 200 angstroms thick and preferably is formed from iron or palladium. The composite material is capable of adsorbing at least 3 weight percent hydrogen and desorbing at least 1 weight percent hydrogen at 30&#xb0; C. The Mg&#x2014;Ni based alloy has a microstructure including both a Mg-rich phase and a Ni-rich phase, micro-tubes having an inner core of Ni-rich material surrounded by a sheathing of Mg-rich material, amorphous structural regions and microcrystalline structural regions.

Mg&#x2014;Ni hydrogen storage composite having high storage capacity and excellent room temperature kinetics

Electrochemical and thermal hydrogen storage alloy compositions that provide superior performance, including an electrochemical hydrogen storage alloy that provides superior low temperature discharge characteristics. The alloy compositions include microstructures in the interface region that are highly porous and that include catalytic metallic particles. The microstructures include a large volume fraction of voids having spherical or channel-like shapes and are sufficiently open structurally to facilitate greater mobility of reactive species within the microstructure and in the vicinity of catalytic metallic particles. Greater accessibility to reactive sites accordingly results. The greater mobility of reactive species and/or the greater density of catalytic particles lead to faster kinetics and improved performance (e.g. higher power), especially at low operating temperatures. The microstructures may be formed through inclusion of a microstructure tuning element in the alloy composition, through control of processing conditions and/or through inclusion of etching steps in the post-formation processing of hydrogen storage alloys.

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Rochester, MI, United States of America

Taihei Ouchi