Nickel Metal Hydride Vs Lithium Ion In Hybrid Cars. In order to circumvent the lack of power, many Ni-MH batteries are large in size, which helps with power, but not with weight. As production of lithium-ion cells ramps up, though, economies of scale come into play and the cost of Li-ion cells should drop.
They are good for working in extreme environments, such as cold or hot weather. The main challenges with nickel-metal hydride batteries are their high cost, high self-discharge and heat generation at high temperatures, and the need to control hydrogen loss. The load characteristics are reasonably good and behave similarly to nickel-cadmium in terms of discharge.
It seems like lithium-ion batteries are everywhere these days, in the tiniest portable electronics and the biggest electric cars.
The more familiar name here is Nickel-Metal Hydride.
These rechargeable powerhouses will soon be installed in hybrid vehicles, too, replacing the nickel metal hydride (NiMH) batteries used most often in the hybrids of the past decade. Nickel Cadmium Nicad batteries are very robust. Part off the efficiency loss seen in a hybrid during a hot summer and cold winter is because of the battery not being within its ideal temperature range..