Abstract: Rechargeable lithium battery cell having a housing, a positive electrode, a negative electrode and an electrolyte containing a conductive salt, wherein the electrolyte comprises SO2 and the positive electrode contains an active material in the composition LixM?yM?z(XO4)aFb, wherein M? is at least one metal selected from the group consisting of the elements Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu and Zn, M? is at least one metal selected from the group consisting of the metals of the groups II A, III A, IV A, V A, VI A, IB, IIB, IIIB, IVB, VB, VIB and VIIIB, X is selected from the group consisting of the elements P, Si and S, x is greater than 0, y is greater than 0, z is greater than or equal to 0, a is greater than 0 and b is greater than or equal to 0.

Abstract: A commutating circuit breaker that works by progressively inserting increasing resistance into a circuit. This is done via physical motion of a shuttle that is linked into the circuit by at least one set of sliding electrical contacts on the shuttle (“shuttle electrodes”) that connect the power through the moving shuttle to a sequence of different resistive paths with increasing resistance; the motion of the shuttle can be either linear or rotary. A feature of the commutating circuit breaker is that at no point are the shuttle electrodes separated from the matching stationary stator electrodes so as to generate a powerful arc, which minimizes damage to the electrodes. Instead, the current is commutated from one resistive path to the next with small enough changes in resistance at each step that arcing can be suppressed. The variable resistance can either be within the moving shuttle, or the shuttle can comprise a commutating shuttle that moves the current over a series of stationary resistors.

Abstract: A mechanical switch that works by commutation of the current to an energy absorbing path or sequence of paths through at least one blocking semiconductor to open the circuit, wherein the commutation is caused by a sliding motion of at least one shuttle electrode over at least one stationary electrode.

Abstract: A rechargeable electrochemical battery cell with a housing, a positive electrode, a negative electrode and an electrolyte which contains SO2 and a conducting salt of the active metal of the cell, whereby at least one of the electrodes contains a binder chosen from the group: Binder A, which consists of a polymer, which is made of monomeric structural units of a conjugated carboxylic acid or of the alkali salt, earth alkali salt or ammonium salt of this conjugated carboxylic acid or a combination thereof or binder B which consists of a polymer based on monomeric styrene structural units or butadiene structural units or a mixture of binder A and B.

Abstract: High capacity (10 GW, for example) passively cooled non-superconducting underground high voltage direct current electric power transmission lines (100) of very low loss (1% per 1,000 km, for example) and competitive cost. The transmission lines (100) include segment modules (101) linked together with compliant splice modules (102) between the segments (101), typically installed in a protective conduit (103). The segment modules (101) include relatively rigid pipe-shaped conductors (117) insulated by pipe-like solid insulating layers (131) to form segment modules (101) that resemble pipe. The segment modules (101) are linked together through radially and axially compliant splice modules (102) to form the transmission line (100).

Abstract: Disclosed is a process for producing an electrolyte for an electrochemical battery cell. In this process, a Lewis acid, a Lewis base and aluminum are mixed. The mixture is heated for a minimum period of six hours to a temperature above a minimum temperature of at least 200° C. and above the melting point of the mixture. An adduct of the Lewis acid and the Lewis base is thereby formed.

Abstract: A commutating circuit breaker that progressively inserts increasing resistance into a circuit via physical motion of a shuttle that is linked into the circuit by at least one set of sliding electrical contacts on the shuttle that connect the power through the moving shuttle to a sequence of different resistive paths with increasing resistance; the motion of the shuttle can be either linear or rotary. At no point are the sliding stator electrodes separated from the matching stationary stator electrodes so as to generate a powerful arc, which minimizes damage to the sliding stator electrodes. Instead, the current is commutated from one resistive path to the next with small enough changes in resistance at each step that arcing is suppressed. The variable resistance can either be within the moving shuttle, or the shuttle can comprise a commutating shuttle that moves the current over a series of stationary resistors.