产业观察

一个天津的研究小组开发出一种储能装置，充电10分钟后，可以使电动巴士行使200千米。

中国工程院院士，首席研究员周国泰表示，这种高性能镍碳超级电容，将电池和电容组合起来，他看起来像一个可充电电池，但由于具有双层蜂窝状活性炭以及电解质，可以为发电提供更大的表面积，使得其具有更高的功率密度。

工作区间温度范围很宽，在-40摄氏度到70摄氏度的范围内，都表现良好，甚至在充放电1000次以后，还能保持这一性能。

天津市政府计划建立一个年产1000万台，可提供30亿安培电力的镍碳超级电容器生产设施。

A Tianjin-based research team has developed an energy storage device on a par with the "energon cube" seen in the Transformers cartoon series. It enables a bus to run 200 kilometers after only a 10-minute charge.

The device, known as a high-performance nickel-carbon super capacitor, is a combination of battery and capacitor, according to lead researcher Zhou Guotai, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering.

It looks similar to rechargeable battery cells, but has much higher power density due to a double layer of honeycombed active carbon and electrolyte that provides a larger surface area to generate electricity.

It can also function over a wide range of temperatures - from - 40 C to 70 C - and continues to perform well even after 10,000 charges and discharges.

The super capacitor, or electrochemical capacitor, uses technology developed more than 30 years ago.

But the proprietary technology developed in China now leads the world, offering a long lifespan, high efficiency, low cost, eco-friendliness and safety, noted Tian Zhaowu, an academician from the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Compared to traditional rechargeable battery cells, the super capacitor is a better choice for electric vehicles, he said.

The device provides much stronger power than the lithium battery and a longer lifespan because its structure is not damaged by the high electric current used in recharging, which can damage lithium batteries.

The technology can be used for new energy vehicles, aerospace, railway systems, telecommunications and national defense, according to Zhao Haishan, director of the Tianjin Science and Technology Commission.

The Tianjin government plans to build a production facility for nickel-carbon super capacitors with an annual output of 10 million units, which together would provide 3 billion ampere-hours of electricity.

It also is considering equipping the city's buses with the super capacitors and setting up quick charging facilities at bus terminals.

A similar technology has already been in use in Shanghai for five years. Nearly 100 buses with super capacitors are running along two lines. They are recharged while passengers get on and off at bus stops, and can run for two or three stops after a charge.

The energy cost is only about 30 percent of a gasoline-powered bus.

A Shanghai super capacitor bus driver surnamed Zhu said it is easier to drive because it uses an automatic transmission. As well, it runs smoothly because its speed is slow, yet fast enough for a bus in the downtown area, he said.

But the biggest problem with current super capacitors is a short power cycle. A car equipped with a super capacitor can run only 30 percent the distance as lead-acid battery cells of the same weight.