Countdown to mass production, is the era of solid-state batteries coming?

In the development of halide electrolyte materials, in 2021, the electrochemical window of halide solid electrolytes was improved through the mutual doping of anions and cations, and the electrochemical potential was stabilized at 4.5 V. Currently, there are more than 20 authorized invention patents.

Manager Lin, head of the market research department of solid-state battery company Taiwan ProLogium Technology Co., Ltd., said that ProLogium's current main technologies include MAB solid-state grouping technology, ASM active safety mechanism, LCB optimized interface impedance and denaturation technology, as well as the inherent safety of electrolytes. These technologies can help them build a new moat.

In addition, ProLogium can provide a complete series of product solutions from Inlay, battery cells, modules to battery packs. If car manufacturers want to improve their production and configuration efficiency, they can directly use ProLogium's VDA module, which can help car manufacturers to make the car's battery pack a simpler installation.

How far is it from semi-solid to fully solid?

As an important upstream supplier of the lithium battery industry, Ganfeng Lithium is currently the world's largest supplier of lithium metal, accounting for about 50% of the market share. In recent years, Ganfeng Lithium has also extended its tentacles to the downstream battery manufacturing industry, established Ganfeng Lithium, and made solid-state batteries an important business direction.

At present, Ganfeng Lithium Battery's first-generation solid-state batteries have been installed on vehicles, and it is expected that the planned 2GWh first-generation solid-state battery production capacity will be gradually released this year.

At this issue of the Car Cloud Conference, Lin Jiu, deputy general manager of Zhejiang Fengli New Energy Technology Co., Ltd., revealed the situation of its solid-state battery electrolyte development. Ganfeng Lithium has achieved mass production in oxide and sulfide materials. Among them, oxide has been mass-produced since 2018. The production line that has been put into use now is 100 tons/year, and the one under construction is 1,000 tons/year, which is expected to be put into production by the middle of next year.

"For the solid-state battery industry, the current stage can be considered the first development stage of solid-state batteries, called the first generation of solid-state batteries, which are often referred to as solid-liquid hybrid or semi-solid-state batteries."

Li Zheng, general manager of Qingtao (Kunshan) Energy Development Co., Ltd., believes that the first-generation solid-state batteries and current liquid lithium batteries can use many materials. Currently, Qingtao's Kunshan factory and Jiangxi Yichun factory already have mass production systems for the first-generation solid-state batteries.

For the second-generation solid-state battery, Qingtao has completed the small-scale test and entered the pilot stage, and it is expected to be SOP in 2024. According to Li Zheng, its liquid content target has been reduced to less than 5%, and there is no diaphragm at all, and the energy density is defined at 400Wh/kg-500Wh/kg.

At the same time, Qingtao is further planning the pilot phase of the third-generation battery, which is what we define as a true all-solid-state battery.

Li Zheng did not give a clear answer as to how long it would take for all-solid-state batteries to be mass-produced and applied. He only said that the mass production time of all-solid-state batteries is directly related to user demand.

However, some large foreign automakers have already disclosed the mass production schedule of all-solid-state batteries: Toyota plans to achieve small-scale mass production of all-solid-state batteries by 2025; Nissan plans to officially start production of all-solid-state batteries in 2028; BMW plans to launch a prototype car using solid-state batteries by 2025, and apply it to mass-produced cars by 2030; Mercedes-Benz has invested in Prologix and plans to achieve mass production of solid-state batteries in 2028.

Cheyun Summary:

Solid-state batteries have obvious advantages in energy density and safety, and are a must-have for the next generation of power battery technology.

In terms of industrial applications, some leading solid-state battery companies have announced that corresponding solid-state battery products will be mass-produced within the year, and the pace of large-scale installation of solid-state lithium batteries in vehicles is getting closer and closer.

However, there is still a long way to go before truly all-solid-state batteries can be produced, and the approximate time point will be 2025 or later.