The latest progress! Are domestic solid-state batteries far ahead? Taking stock of the latest progress in global solid-state batteries, who is better?-EEWORLD

Collect

Recently, there have been news about solid-state battery R&D breakthroughs, mass production, and high-density breakthroughs, both from domestic manufacturers and multinational auto giants. It seems that the application of solid-state batteries in cars is just around the corner.

From the beginning of the year to now, there have been a lot of news about the release of solid-state batteries, including large and small automobile manufacturers at home and abroad, as well as various research institutes. The following is Uncle Biao’s preliminary summary of the latest progress of domestic and global solid-state batteries.

1. Progress of domestic solid-state batteries and semi-solid-state batteries

1. Qingtao Energy, Semi-solid-state battery Zhiji Mass production

A few days ago, Zhiji officially announced that Zhiji L6 will be the first to be equipped with The industry's first mass-produced ultra-fast charging solid-state battery , With the help of ultra-fast charging solid-state batteries, Zhiji L6 will "achieve an ultra-long range of over 1,000 kilometers." According to its official poster, it is The industry's first quasi-900V ultra-fast charging solid-state battery .

The so-called "solid-state battery" used in Zhiji L6 is provided by Qingtao Energy. At present, after identification by industry insiders, it is no longer controversial that it is a "semi-solid-state battery".

Moreover, among the domestic manufacturers, NIO and Lantu are the only ones that have achieved mass production and installed semi-solid-state batteries in their vehicles.

2. GAC's all-solid-state battery will be mass-produced in 2026

On April 12, GAC Group held a Technology Day event.

At the event, GAC officially released its third-generation sponge silicon negative electrode technology and high surface capacity solid-state positive electrode technology, achieving an all-solid-state battery energy density of more than 400Wh/Kg, an increase of more than 52% in volume energy density and more than 50% in mass energy density over the current mass-produced liquid lithium-ion batteries, achieving a range of over 1,000 kilometers.

GAC's goal is to complete mass production of all-solid-state batteries and factory vehicles by 2026, which will be first installed on the Haobo model.

3. Tailan 720wh/kg all-solid-state battery

On April 2, Tailan Automobile officially announced that it has successfully developed the world's first all-solid-state lithium metal battery with a single cell capacity of 120Ah and a measured energy density of up to 720Wh/kg.

It is understood that the energy density of lithium iron phosphate batteries is generally around 100-160Wh/kg, and the energy density of ternary lithium batteries is usually between 150 and 250Wh/kg. This means that with the same amount of power, the weight of this all-solid-state lithium battery is only 1/5 of the current mainstream battery! However, Tailan solid-state batteries are in the testing stage and have not yet announced a specific mass production time.

4. The Chinese Academy of Sciences has made a major breakthrough in solid-state batteries.

On April 10, the Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Process Technology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences announced that the institute's advanced energy storage materials and technology research group has made new progress in sulfide electrolyte research, solving the industry pain points and bottlenecks of the sulfide all-solid-state battery stacking process, breaking through the last hurdle in the large-scale automotive battery manufacturing process of sulfide all-solid-state batteries, and achieving a key breakthrough in sulfide soft-pack battery stacking technology.
【Car People】All-solid-state batteries face challenges when used in cars

【Car People】All-solid-state batteries face challenges when used in cars

Although key technologies have been broken through, they are still in the production line experiment stage. The current goal of the Qingdao Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences is to achieve mass production of sulfide all-solid-state batteries by 2026.

5. CATL, condensed matter battery

On April 3, a netizen asked about the progress of CATL's condensed matter batteries on an interactive platform.

CATL responded that the company's condensed matter battery has an energy density of up to 500Wh/kg, and is conducting cooperative development of a civil electric manned aircraft project, implementing aviation-grade standards and tests, and meeting aviation-grade safety and quality requirements. At the same time, it will also launch an automotive-grade application version of the condensed matter battery.

In fact, CATL has officially released its innovative cutting-edge battery technology - condensed matter battery - at the Shanghai Auto Show on April 18, 2023.

Can condensed matter batteries be considered solid-state batteries? In fact, condensed matter batteries are a type of solid-state batteries. The main difference between condensed matter batteries and solid-state batteries lies in the state of the electrolyte. Condensed matter batteries use semi-solid electrolytes with adhesive characteristics, while solid-state batteries use completely solid electrolytes. The technical advantages of condensed matter batteries include greater stability, larger capacity, and faster conduction efficiency.

In other words, CATL's condensed matter battery is actually also a semi-solid-state battery!

6. Sino-German cooperation on 1000wh/kg solid-state battery

On April 5, the German Research Association for the Promotion of Sustainable Physical Technology announced at the "Invest in China" Germany special promotion event held in Stuttgart that after nearly two years of research and development, a team of German experts has invented a complete set of high-performance and high-safety solid-state sodium-sulfur battery fully automatic continuous production processes, which can make the battery energy density exceed 1000wh/kg and the theoretical loading capacity of the negative electrode is as high as 20,000wh/kg.

It is said that the overall design of this German production process has been completed, and it is cooperating with many universities in China and Germany to build a research and development center and a test production line. It is expected that equipment prototypes and battery samples will be available by the end of this year, and mass production capacity will be available by the end of next year.

2. Japanese solid-state batteries

Japan started developing solid-state batteries early. According to public information, Toyota, Nissan and others began developing all-solid-state batteries using sulfide as electrolyte in 2008.

Toyota announced on October 12, 2023 that the mass production technology of all-solid-state batteries jointly developed by Idemitsu Kosan and Toyota Motor Corporation has achieved a landmark breakthrough; claiming that the car can travel 1,000 km after charging for 20 minutes. The pilot test plant for solid electrolytes (large-scale mass production demonstration test) will start operation in 2027, and mass production of all-solid-state batteries is expected in 2030.

Another Japanese solid-state battery pioneer, Nissan, announced on April 16, 2024 the planned location of its all-solid-state battery trial production line, securing about 10,000 square meters of space in the Yokohama plant building that produces engines, etc., to advance construction for moving equipment in. Nissan plans to start production of all-solid-state batteries in March 2025, with the goal of achieving mass production in 2028.

Japan started solid-state battery research and development early and has many patents; Toyota is currently the automaker with the largest number of solid-state battery patents in the world. However, compared with its Chinese counterparts, it is obviously slower in promoting industrial transformation and commercialization.

3. Korean solid-state batteries

Among Korean companies, Samsung SDI began actively developing all-solid-state batteries more than 10 years ago. SK On and LG Energy Solutions have also started related research and development and are catching up.

The company that has made the most progress is undoubtedly Samsung SDI. According to public information, Samsung SDI plans to mass-produce all-solid-state batteries in 2027.

Next is LG Energy Solution, which plans to realize polymer all-solid-state batteries in 2026 and has set a goal of commercializing sulfide all-solid-state batteries in 2030.

SK, on the other hand, is lagging behind. SK On plans to build an all-solid-state battery test production line at its Daejeon Battery Research Institute by 2025, but there is no timetable for mass production yet.

4. Most of the companies are European and American start-ups, and industrialization has not yet begun

In the United States, the development of solid-state battery technology is mainly driven by start-ups such as Solid Power, Quantum Scape, Factorial Energy, Ionic Materials, etc., which have layouts in sulfides, oxides and polymers.

Several major American automakers, such as Ford and General Motors, currently have no news on the research and development progress of solid-state batteries.

European automakers, such as Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes-Benz, are much more proactive than their American counterparts; but they are also mainly accelerating the development of solid-state battery technology by investing in American start-ups.

For example, Volkswagen's investment in QuantumScape makes it its largest shareholder; BMW and Ford have invested in Solid Power, which plans to develop a corresponding battery to match BMW prototype vehicles by 2025; Mercedes-Benz has invested in Factorial Energy, and the two parties have also reached a cooperation to jointly develop solid-state batteries.