Electric car battery technology is worth all the hype, according to experts
I have seen Titles: This battery breakthrough will change the electric car forever. And then… silence. When you head to your local showroom, you will find that all the cars look and feel similar.
WIRED is alarmed by this phenomenon. So we talked to battery tech experts about what’s really going on in electric car batteries. What technologies are here? Possibly so, but not yet, so don’t hold your breath? What probably won’t be coming anytime soon?
“It’s easy to get excited about these things, because batteries are so complex,” says Pranav Jaswani, a technology analyst at IDTechEx, a market intelligence company. “So many little things will have such a big impact.” For this reason, many companies, including automakers, suppliers and battery makers, are experimenting with many small parts of the battery. Swap one electrically conductive material for another, and an electric car’s battery range could increase by 50 miles. Reorganize how battery packs are put together, and the automaker could cut manufacturing costs enough to give consumers a break in sales.
However, experts say, introducing small modifications to production cars can take a long time – sometimes 10 years or more. “Obviously we want to make sure that everything we put into an electric vehicle works well and complies with safety standards,” says Evelina Stojko, who leads the battery technology and supply chain team at research firm BloombergNEF. Ensuring this means that scientists come up with new ideas, and that suppliers know how to implement them; Automakers, in turn, rigorously test each iteration. At the same time, everyone is asking the most important question: Does this improvement make financial sense?
So it stands to reason that not every lab breakthrough hits the mark. Here are the ones that really matter, and the ones that haven’t quite worked, at least not yet.
It really happens
All major breakthroughs in the field of batteries have one thing in common: they are related to the lithium-ion battery. There are other battery chemistries out there — more on those later — but in the next decade, it will be difficult to catch up to the dominant battery form. “Lithium-ion is already very mature,” Stojko says. Many players have invested a lot of money in technology, so “any new player will have to compete with the status quo.”
Lithium iron phosphate
Why is it exciting?: LFP batteries use iron and phosphate instead of the more expensive and more difficult to obtain nickel and cobalt found in traditional lithium-ion batteries. It is also more stable and slower to degrade after multiple charges. The upshot: LFP batteries could help lower the cost of manufacturing an electric vehicle, a particularly important data point as Western electric companies struggle to compete, cost-wise, with traditional gas-powered cars. LFP batteries are already popular in China, and are set to become even more popular in European and American electric vehicles in the coming years.
Why is this difficult?: LFP is less power-dense than alternatives, which means you can’t pack the same amount of charge — or range — into each battery.
More nickel
Why is it sexy: Increasing the nickel content in lithium-nickel-manganese-cobalt batteries results in increased energy density, which means greater range in the battery pack without increased size or weight. More nickel can also mean less cobalt, an expensive and ethically questionable metal.
Why is this difficult?: Batteries with a higher nickel content are likely to be less stable, which means they carry a greater risk of cracking or thermal fires. This means that battery makers experimenting with different nickel content must spend more time and energy carefully designing their products. This extra fuss means more expenses. For this reason, we expect to see more use of nickel in advanced electric vehicle batteries.
Dry electrode process
Why is it exciting?: Typically, battery electrodes are manufactured by mixing materials in a solvent slurry, which is then applied to metal current collecting foil, dried, and pressed. The dry electrode process minimizes solvents by mixing materials into a dry powder form before application and lamination. Less solvents mean fewer environmental, health and safety concerns. Eliminating the drying process can save production time – and increase efficiency – while reducing the physical footprint needed to manufacture batteries. All of this could lead to cheaper manufacturing, “which should trickle down to making a cheaper car,” Jaswani says. Tesla has already integrated the dry anode process into its battery industry. (The anode is the negative electrode that stores lithium ions while charging the battery.) LG and Samsung SGI are also working on pilot production lines.
Why is this difficult?: Using dry powders can be more technically complex.
Cell to package
Why is it exciting?: In your standard electric car battery, the individual battery cells are assembled into modules, which are then assembled into packs. Not so in cell-to-pack, which places cells directly into the package structure without a middle unit step. This allows battery makers to fit more batteries into the same space, and could lead to an additional range of about 50 miles and higher top speeds, Jaswani says. It also lowers manufacturing costs, a savings that can be passed on to the car buyer. Major automakers, including Tesla and BYD, as well as Chinese battery giant CATL, are already using this technology.
Why is this difficult?: Without modules, it may be difficult to control thermal runaway and maintain the battery pack structure. In addition, the “cell-to-pack” process makes replacing a defective battery cell more difficult, meaning that small defects may require the entire pack to be opened or even replaced.
Silicon anodes
Why is it exciting?Lithium-ion batteries contain graphite anodes. However, adding silicon to the mix could have huge positives: more energy storage (meaning longer driving ranges) and faster charging, perhaps as long as a six to 10-minute burn to charge. Tesla already mixes a little silicon into its graphite anodes, as do other automakers.Mercedes Benz, GM– Suppose they are approaching mass production.
Why is this difficult?: Lithium-blended silicone expands and contracts as it goes through the charge-discharge cycle, which can cause mechanical fatigue and even breakage. Over time, this can lead to a further loss of battery capacity. Currently, you’re more likely to find silicon anodes in smaller batteries, such as those found in phones or even motorcycles.
It kind of happens
The battery technology in the most speculative group has undergone a lot of testing. But it’s still a long way from where most manufacturers build production lines and put them in cars.
Sodium ion batteries
Why is it sexy: Sodium – it’s everywhere! Compared to lithium, the element is cheaper and easier to find and process, which means tracking down the materials needed to build sodium-ion batteries could give automakers a break in the supply chain. The batteries also seem to perform better in extreme temperatures, and are more stable. Chinese battery manufacturer CATL It says it will start mass production of batteries next year and that batteries could eventually cover 40 percent of the Chinese passenger car market.
Why is it difficult: Sodium ions are heavier than their lithium counterparts, so they generally store less energy per battery pack. This could make them better suited for battery storage than cars. It’s also early days for this technology, which means fewer suppliers and fewer time-tested manufacturing processes.
Solid state batteries
Why is it sexy: Automakers have been promising for years that pioneering solid-state batteries are just around the corner. That would be great, if true. This technology infuses liquid or gel electrolytes into a conventional lithium-ion battery to obtain a solid electrolyte. These electrolytes should come in different chemistries, but they all have some big advantages: greater energy density, faster charging, greater durability, fewer safety risks (no liquid electrolyte means no leaks). Toyota says so It will finally be launched Its first cars with solid-state batteries in 2027 or 2028. BloombergNEF Projects By 2035, solid-state batteries will account for 10 percent of electric vehicle and storage production.
Why is this difficult?Some solid electrolytes have difficulty at low temperatures. But the biggest issues relate to manufacturing. Assembling these new batteries requires new equipment. It is really difficult to build defect-free layers of electrolytes. The industry has not reached agreement on what type of solid electrolyte to use, making it difficult to establish supply chains.
Maybe it will happen
Good ideas don’t always make much sense in the real world.
Wireless charging
Why is it exciting?: Park your car, get out, and charge it while you wait, no plugs required. Wireless charging may be the pinnacle of convenience, and some automakers insist it’s coming. Porsche, for example, is showing off a prototype, with plans to roll out the real thing next year.
Why is this difficult?The problem, Jaswani says, is that the technology behind the chargers we have now works just fine and is much cheaper to install. He expects wireless charging will eventually appear in some restricted use cases, perhaps on buses, for example, which can be charged along their routes if they stop on top of a charging pad. But he says the technology may never become mainstream.