Battery-powered car race is on

I think NimH gets a pretty bad rap. One of the biggest things that has held it back of course is Texaco/Chevrons patent control. There are finally people starting to get around this though, like these from Nilar:
http://www.nilar.com/be/__media/pageID_14/langID_1/Nilar MB 24V 9Ah.pdf

A 6.5kW pack of these would weigh ~250 lbs and cost $6000 even at single quantity retail prices. By comparison harvesting A123 18650 cells out of dewalt packs you could build a 6.5kW Li-ion pack that would weigh about 165 lbs but cost ~$20,000. On top of that the Li-ion require much more sophisticated management systems, active cooling and fire prevention schemes, and they are not yet recyclable. Is all that really worth saving 85 lbs on a pack the size of the Hymotion? I'm not sure. In the long run, as packs get bigger Li-ion of some flavor will probably be the way to go but I'm not sure we're at the point where it makes sense yet. I'm also not sure I trust GM to rush this new technology to market, their track record isn't exactly stellar.

Rob

 

Not only are Li-Ion batteries recyclable, they are not toxic to handle like nimh batteries.

 

Can you please provide links to this information. It is the first time I have heard that NimH batteries are toxic.