CSIRO is the Aussie R&D powerhouse which has developed many interesting energy devices including a modified lead-acid battery they call the "UltraBattery" - really a Batt-Cap.
http://www.csiro.au/news/UltraBattery.html It has already clocked up 100,000 miles in a hybrid vehicle and Japan’s Furukawa Battery Company has begun mass production. A US manufacturer East Penn, which bills itself as the World's largest Independent Battery maker - has also signed on. http://www.eastpenn-deka.com/ http://www.eastpenn-deka.com/default.aspx?pageid=1372 Tests show the UltraBattery has a lifecycle four times longer and produces 50 per cent more power than conventional SLA batteries and charges more rapidly. It is also about 70 per cent cheaper than the lithium storage systems for hybrid electric vehicles. Bottom line - GM has said the volt lithium batteries will cost the buyer $10,000 for the 40 mile range. With this UltraBattery instead, although the weight would be considerably more, the cost would be only $3000.
