Eestor ultracapacitor to power Lockheed Martin military applications

By Stan Beer
Sunday, 13 January 2008 04:34

Science - Energy

A secretive power storage startup that claims it has developed a revolutionary super battery based on ultracapacitor technology may wipe the smirks off the faces of skeptics by signing an exclusive deal with defence giant Lockheed Martin. News of the Lockheed deal with Texas based Eestor also sent the stock of Canadian electric car maker Zenn Motor Company soaring because it has an exclusive license to use Eestor ultracapacitors in small electric vehicles.

Eestor made headlines 12 months ago when it claimed to have started mass producing "a ceramic energy storage unit (ESU)", an ultracapacitor which had 2.5 times the storage capacity of Lithium Ion batteries at a fraction of the weight and volume and half the cost. The ESU, weighing just 150kg, is claimed to be able to store up to 52 kilowatt hours of energy - enough to power a highway capable car for 800 kilometres - with a charging time of just five minutes.

Skeptics were quick to pour cold water on the claims which are based on technology which stores large amounts of electrical energy on a specially designed capacitor constructed from barium titanate powder. A capacitor differs from a battery in that it doesn't store energy using a chemical process but uses the separation of positive and negative charges on plates separated by a non conductive dielectric to maintain electrical potential. The problem is that all known capacitors leak energy at an unacceptably high rate. The Eestor ESU, however, is claimed to lose just 0.01% of its energy in a month.

Despite the skepticism, Zenn, which makes a small lead acid battery powered hatchback that can go just 40 km/hour with a range of 56 km, invested US$2.5 million in Eestor 12 months ago, copping considerable flack from the market in the process. News of the Lockheed Martin deal, however, has sent Zenn stock up 28% on the Toronto Stock Exchange and provided much needed credibility in its investment strategy.

“Lockheed Martin has a wide range of innovative energy solutions for federal, state and regional energy applications,” said Glenn Miller, vice president of Technical Operations and Applied Research at Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control.  “The Eestor energy storage technology provides potential solutions for the demanding requirements for energy in military and homeland defense applications.”

Despite the Lockheed Martin deal, skeptics are not likely to be silenced until they see at least a working prototype of an Eestor ultracapacitor. There is still no definitive timeframe for when the world might see the first Zenn cars powered by an Eestor ESU roll off the production line.