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Battery breakthrough set to accelerate electric-car development

A team of scientists working at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are claiming a significant breakthrough in recharging times for lithium-ion batteries. According to findings published in the scientific journal Nature, MIT researchers Byoungwoo Kang and Gerbrand Ceder have unlocked the potential of lithium-ion batteries by patenting a unique process which is claimed to allow a typical laptop power pack to be fully recharged in less than a minute--an improvement in recharging performance of roughly 90 percent over existing lithium-ion batteries. Lithium-ion batteries generate electric current via the flow of lithium ions across an electrolyte, from an electrode to a cathode.

Porsche 918 Spyder takes on the Nurburgring

Porsche has taken their concept hybrid supercar – the 918 Spyder – to the Nurburgring to set a time – 7 minutes 14 seconds. But a hybrid halo doesn’t have to mean poor performance, a point Porsche has proved by taking the 918 Spyder to the Nurburgring to set a lap time. The Porsche 918 Spyder can deliver a total of 759bhp from its race-derived V8 and two electric motors which, although less than the likely power available to the F70 of P1, is still a significant amount of get up and go.

Toyota smashes electric car lap record at Nurburgring

Toyota has set a new electric car record at the Nurburgring – with a silent but speedy 7min 47.794sec lap of the Nordschleife. You can watch the record lap in our video above. Ring specialist Jochen Krumbach was at the wheel of the Toyota Motorsport EV P001 racer, obliterating Peugeot's previous 9min 1.338sec record in the EX1 concept car.