The Estonian company Skeleton is collaborating with the Karlsruhe Institute for Technology to develop a graphene battery that can be charged within 15 seconds and with a lifetime of hundreds of thousands of charging cycles. The battery cell heats up less and can be bigger, but is still only half as expensive and heavy as previously. Tesla, too, is sticking with the current technology, but has announced that it is exploiting changes in the battery design to increase the range by 16 to 18 per cent and shorten charging times by a factor of 6. Because silicon can store more lithium ions than graphite, the energy density should increase, the batteries should have longer lifetimes, and their range and cycle stability should be increased. That company is looking to replace the carbon in the anode with silicon-based compounds. BMW and Daimler have both invested around 300 million dollars in the Silicon Valley start-up Sila Nano. The QuantumScape solid-state battery can reportedly charge from zero to 80 per cent in 15 minutes, after 800 cycles it still has an 80 per cent capacity, and it can even operate at temperatures of minus 30 degrees – with no significant loss of performance.Ĭonversely, BMW and Daimler are investing in further development of the lithium-ion technology with liquid electrolytes. A solid, ceramic electrolyte, by contrast, could form a mechanical barrier. What’s more, no lithium deposits form in them on the electrodes, which can otherwise lead to short-circuits. Solid ceramic electrolytes are non-combustible, which increases safety in the e-car. Whereas the electrolyte in current lithium-ion batteries is liquid, QuantumScape uses a ceramic electrolyte and dispenses with the anode. At the end of 2020, QuantumScape reported that 60 per cent faster charging was possible with its batteries, and the energy density of the battery was increased by 50 to 100 per cent. Together, they aim to make the production of solid-state batteries viable for the mass market. Volkswagen has invested US$ 300 million in the Stanford University start-up QuantumScape. In one regard, however, all batteries are similar: they comprise three basic components – anode, cathode, electrolyte. Solid-state cells are the preferred new solution. One thing is definitely clear: the lithium-ion battery, as used currently in pure electric cars, is reaching its limits. The Volkswagen Group alone is using two dozen different battery cell formats. The variety of concepts in this race for the super-battery is confusing: alongside the lithium-ion battery which has mainly been used to date, you can read about lithium-sulphur, lithium-sodium and lithium-air cells, and even lithium-iron phosphate batteries and graphene batteries. The race for pole position on super-batteries is being contested between the major automotive manufacturers and well-known research institutes worldwide, along with experimental start-ups. A further quantum leap lies immediately ahead: headlines have announced the advent of the two million kilometre battery, and a super-battery which charges in 15 seconds. Advances in range and battery life have definitely contributed to this. Taking all hybrids together, the share of the total market is more than 30 per cent. Mobility is becoming increasingly electric: almost twenty per cent of new registrations in September 2022 in Germany were pure e-cars, while the share for plug-ins was 12.6 per cent of the overall car market in Germany. Simultaneously, several companies are claiming to have achieved the ultimate revolution in battery technology – using different approaches. ![]() The requirements for the electric-car-battery of the future are extensive. ![]() It should have a long range, be sustainable and safe, but also less expensive, small and durable. The discussions focus, above all, on the very heart of electric vehicles: the battery. There are still reservations about switching to an electric car.
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