Major breakthrough in fast charging technology: charging in 5 minutes and driving 160 kilometers has become a reality

There are two main ways to solve the core pain points of electric vehicles. One is to increase battery density and improve driving range, and the other is to shorten charging time. From the perspective of car usage, shortening charging time is actually more important than increasing driving range. If the time to fully charge the battery is about the same as filling up a tank of gas, and the driving range is also similar to the distance that can be traveled on a tank of gas, then the pain points of electric vehicles will no longer exist.

Israel's StoreDot, a star company in the fast-charging market, recently demonstrated its power battery fast-charging technology at the "EcoMotion Week 2022" event held in Israel, which can recharge electric vehicles with enough power to travel 100 miles (160 kilometers) in 5 minutes.

This technology is expected to be mass-produced in 2024.

This is the fastest verifiable charging efficiency for known power batteries, and is close to the time efficiency of humans refueling.

Is this a historic moment?

StoreDot chief Dr. Amir Tirosh cites the   Tesla  Model S Plaid's  0  -  to-100-mph time of 4.3 seconds as a measure of how far cars have come compared to the 1953 Alfa Romeo Disco Volante, which hit 100 mph in 17.8 seconds.

In terms of charging, similar progress would be to achieve 100 miles of charging in 2 minutes, more than doubling the performance of existing technology.

The battery demonstrated by StoreDot this time is a battery called "pouch" produced by its Chinese partner Yiwei Lithium Energy in its Chinese factory. It is 300mm long and 100mm wide, which is much larger than Tesla's 4680 battery (46mm wide and 80mm high) and the traditional 18650 (18mm wide and 65mm high).

It is reported that during the demonstration, the battery was charged from zero to more than 80% in 10 minutes, and the battery temperature was stable and never exceeded 33°C, which is far below the recommended operating temperature set by StoreDot's technicians. StoreDot also stated that the battery showed optimal levels in every key parameter.

StoreDot officials said the demonstration further validated the company’s “100inX” strategic technology roadmap, which sets three key milestones based on advances in its silicon-dominant anode technology and “extremely high energy density” semi-solid batteries for its Extreme Fast Charging (XFC) batteries:

By 2024, a 100-mile charge (100in5) will be achieved in 5 minutes.

By 2028, a 100-mile charge (100in3) can be achieved in 3 minutes.

By 2032, 100 miles of electricity (100in2) can be charged in 2 minutes.

▲ StoreDot's Extreme Fast Charge roadmap

"This new technology is another milestone in our technology roadmap," said Yaron Fein, StoreDot's vice president of research and development. "We have delivered batteries capable of more than 1,200 continuous extreme rapid cycles. Our goal is to have batteries that can be used in electric vehicles complete more than 1,000 cycles by the end of this year and ultimately achieve the '100in2' goal."

The improvement of charging efficiency depends on two key factors: energy density and total battery capacity.

Increasing battery energy density in the coming years will depend largely on improving the performance of both anodes and cathodes.

Therefore, silicon-dominated anodes and ternary cathodes, such as lithium-nickel-cobalt-manganese, are expected to continue to drive advances in battery energy density.

▲LiB energy density continues to rise. Image source: BNEF

Dr Amir Tirosh said the energy density of batteries (when subjected to slow charging) is expected to increase from about 240Wh/kg in 2021 to just over 300Wh/kg in 2024. Nominal battery pack capacity is likely to increase from 60kWh to more than 75kWh over the same period.

Likewise, industry charging rates are expected to increase from approximately 2.4°C to 3.0°C, with industry-wide 100-mile charging times decreasing from 16.7 minutes in 2021 to around 9 minutes in 2024.

However, he said StoreDot’s silicon-dominated anode technology in XFC cells could cut that to about five minutes at 6.3°C by 2024.

He stressed that the realization of StoreDot's "100in3" high-energy density battery pack around 2028 will mark another huge leap in battery performance.

He expects battery energy density to be around 450Wh/kg by then, with nominal battery capacity expected to reach 92kWh, charging time to 100 miles reduced to about 3 minutes, efficiency improved by another 40%, and then reduced to 100in2 by 2032 (a further reduction of 33%).

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But to achieve an additional 100 miles of range with a 2-minute charge within 10 years, StoreDot's batteries are expected to achieve a slow-charging energy density of 700Wh/kg by 2032, with a capacity of 160kWh.

In this form, StoreDot's "100in2" battery is expected to be able to add 100 miles of range in about 2 minutes.

With a potential range of 990 miles, electric vehicles powered by StoreDot's energy-dense batteries will meet or even exceed consumers' range-per-charge expectations, addressing concerns about range and charging challenges.

However, Dr. Amir Tirosh believes that this is not something that StoreDot can accomplish independently. Electric vehicles form part of a larger ecosystem that must also develop in tandem with batteries.

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While battery pack design and chemistry play a role in determining how long a battery can be safely charged, external factors such as the power output of the charging station and the current-carrying capabilities of the charging cable and plug must support extremely fast charging to enhance the user experience and ensure rapid adoption of electric vehicles around the world.

Currently, for Level 3 DC charging, the Combined Charging System (CCS) specification supports up to 400A continuous at 1,000V and 400kW of power, although several companies make CCS chargers that can output up to 500A.

In Asia, a joint development project between Japan’s CHAdeMO-led association and China’s State Grid utility operator aims to increase this to 900kW at 1,500V and 600A.

Without the support of these technologies, it is unrealistic to achieve an increase in range of 100 miles in 2 minutes.

During the technical discussion session of the "EcoMotion Week 2022" event, StoreDot CEO Doron Myersdorf also proposed an initiative to significantly improve the charging time of electric vehicles.

He believes that only by improving charging time can the popularization of large-scale electrified transportation be accelerated. When people can charge their cars in the same time as at gas stations, electric vehicles can be truly accepted by more consumers.

Simply put, StoreDot's goal is to make charging as convenient as refueling.

According to official information, StoreDot's fast charging technology will continue to be tested by automakers.

Other automotive industry-related companies that also appeared at the "EcoMotion Week 2022" event include General Motors, Volvo, Ford, Hyundai, Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance and Continental. It will be worth paying attention to whether StoreDot's fast charging technology will arouse the interest of car companies.

However, Daimler and Volvo Cars are already its investors.

StoreDot is a relatively unfamiliar name to the Chinese market. The company was founded in 2012 and is headquartered in Tel Aviv, Israel. The company is dedicated to battery technology that can charge a mobile phone in just tens of seconds or fully charge an electric car in a few minutes.

However, due to its cooperation with Yiwei Lithium Energy, it has already gained considerable popularity in the Chinese power battery market.

StoreDot's breakthrough in charging efficiency is said to be due to its use of nanotechnology to synthesize an artificial polymer material. The battery developed using this material can store higher amounts of electricity at a faster rate.

Experts explain that this is like an ultra-high-density sponge that can quickly absorb and retain water.

This is expected to completely solve the core pain point of electric vehicles - charging time is too long. Once this technology is put into use, it will inevitably rapidly change the landscape of the automobile market, and electric vehicles will greatly accelerate the pace of replacing fuel vehicles.

Because of this, StoreDot's fast charging technology has long attracted the attention of related companies. Daimler invested $60 million in it in September 2017, and Samsung Ventures also participated in the investment.

Martin Daum, head of Daimler's commercial vehicle business, said: "Fast charging technology is a very important research topic, especially for fleet operators of Daimler truck brands, and the company is working together with StoreDot to improve this technology."

When Daimler was developing electric trucks, it said that the high cost of batteries and the high power consumption of trucks when loaded, which resulted in the need for frequent charging of vehicles, were two major problems that affected the development of electric trucks.

"Being able to charge a vehicle in five minutes would greatly reduce driver anxiety," said Doron Myersdorf, CEO of StoreDot. "If drivers know there's a charging station in town that will charge their vehicle in five minutes, just like refueling a combustion engine vehicle, they will support the adoption of electric vehicles."

On April 30, 2021, Yiwei Lithium Energy and StoreDot signed the "Electric Vehicle Strategic Cooperation Framework Agreement". The two parties will cooperate on electric vehicle batteries in three phases, which will be valid until December 31, 2024.

According to the agreement:

In the first phase, the two parties will jointly conduct R&D and sample testing to meet the manufacturing process of the pilot production line and manufacture engineering samples for evaluation by StoreDot, EVE Energy and potential electric vehicle partners;

The second phase will start small-scale production;

The third phase will see the establishment of a joint venture to produce batteries for electric vehicles.