Laptop batteries are "dangerous"
Lithium-ion batteries are fundamentally flawed and "dangerous little boxes of energy", according to Japanese scientists
A Japanese researcher has warned that the fundamental technology behind lithium-ion batteries is dangerous and needs to be rethought.
Masataka Wakihara of the Tokyo Institute of Technology said that the batteries, found in most mobile phones and laptop computers, simply aren't well enough made for the tasks they were being asked to perform and that changes in design are required.
"Battery companies are still learning because the technology is young," Professor Wakihara told The Times. "But there is a fundamental flaw with the way lithium-ion batteries are currently designed and if the companies genuinely care about safety, they need to completely change their production methods. A lithium-ion battery is quite a dangerous little box of energy."
The comments were supported by Kuniaki Tatsumi, head of the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology's battery research group. Mr Tatsumi claims, "companies are less cautious about designing batteries with a focus on safety."
The comments follow a string of high-profile recalls. In 2006 Sony was forced to recall nearly 10 million batteries after fears arose concerning overheating. And just last week, Nokia admitted 46 million batteries in its phone handsets may overheat.
