tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6002016549730514348.post1654734796250425214..comments2024-03-28T22:13:16.073-07:00Comments on This week in batteries (TWiB): LBNL everywhere...?Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00612502163391007669noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6002016549730514348.post-594480590083664822011-03-29T16:16:26.774-07:002011-03-29T16:16:26.774-07:00I've heard of a technology that is essentially...I've heard of a technology that is essentially a nuclear type battery. Do you have any insight into this? Is it even possible?Sidhttp://bloggingunderground2.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6002016549730514348.post-84191065969883626472010-05-02T05:55:36.332-07:002010-05-02T05:55:36.332-07:00Anonymous on "is this enough for the US to ge...Anonymous on "is this enough for the US to get a lead": The answer is Yes and No. We all have to realize that making a battery is very very hard. Battery folks will tell you that it takes 10 years and $100M to build a battery company and then BYD from china will eat your lunch. There are certainly exceptions to this, but the point being made is its very hard to make a battery. The good news here is that the projects are supposed to be high risk, so its going to be hard for a BYD to compete with them, if they succeed. "if they succeed" is the operative phase because if its high risk, its also hard to make them successful. But ARPA-E is supposed to fund high risk ideas. <br />There is a phrase in my native tongue that essentially translates to: to succeed, your time should be good (i.e., you should be lucky), or your timing should be good. To succeed in making a better battery you probably have to have both. The timing is great for someone in the battery space (with all the present interest in storage). All you need is a bid of luck. Maybe VC should use a new due diligence method that involves gauging the luck of the entrepreneur ("do you feel lucky, punk? Do you?")! <br />So its hard to make a battery, but we have to start somewhere. $5M can go a long way for a paper idea to reach a point where we can get to a 'go no-go decision'. And a ARPA-E grant of $5M can lead to more interest and more funding from, say, VC's etc. and can spur further development. Now some of the companies that got funded have been working on the problem for 15 years and have already spent 10's of millions of dollars on it. Is another $5M going to be enough to push this over the top? Its hard to believe this, but I really hope so.Venkat Srinivasannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6002016549730514348.post-14838723558208612122010-05-01T10:40:12.621-07:002010-05-01T10:40:12.621-07:00Is ARPA-E enough to ensure US lead in this technol...Is ARPA-E enough to ensure US lead in this technology?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6002016549730514348.post-55501295884472760082010-04-30T16:02:22.933-07:002010-04-30T16:02:22.933-07:00Cool...Look forward to hearing more about these te...Cool...Look forward to hearing more about these technologies. <br /><br />-BalaAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com