Lead carbon offers a cheap alternative to lithium ion batteries

Although, they have just over a quarter the energy density per unit weight, compared to traditional lead acid batteries, US makers Axion claim that lead carbon batteries can be fully charged and discharged to over 90% depth over 7hours, more than 1,600 times before failure. This compares with most conventional lead acid batteries that can only withstand 300 to 500 cycles of such treatment. Whereas conventional lead acid batteries use lead plates for anode and cathode, the cathodes of the new batteries are made up of a five layer assembly that comprises an active carbon electrode, a corrosion barrier, a current collector, a second corrosion barrier and a second active carbon electrode. Weight is lower than conventional lead acid batteries, because there is only one set of led electrodes instead of two. They also continue to work down to -50ºC. An agreement has recently been signed with Exide Technologies, under which Axion has agreed to supply an escalating number of batteries to Exide on a monthly basis. Exide has operations in more than 80 countries and is one of the world's largest producers and recyclers of conventional lead acid batteries.