Polestar 5 prototype with fast charging silicon anode battery from StoreDot

[OyCrumbler]

https://electrek.co/2024/04/29/poles...utes-video-ev/

StoreDot is a battery startup that's been working on silicon anode batteries for a while now. Previous iterations of their battery have been individual cells or small stacks, so this is a bit different in being actually inside a battery pack for an EV as a prototype.

The big news here is that with a battery pack of 77 kWh capacity, the vehicle has hit a base line of charging rate of 310 kW throughout 10-80% which took about ten minutes with a peak of 370 kW (so 4.8 C rate peak, and 4 C rate minimum for 10-80%). That would be about 54 kWh added in ten minutes so in a 3 miles per kWh efficiency vehicle that'd be about 160 miles added in ten minutes and in a 4 miles per kWh efficiency vehicle, that'd be about 210 miles added in ten minutes. StoreDot has stated that they're looking at large energy density increases over the two or three years before they see this in a production vehicle. That's very promising as the energy density they're hitting is already quite high and silicon is a much cheaper anode material than graphite and meanwhile the battery uses nickel as the anode and lithium as the electrolyte so the underlying materials overall are quite cheap.

I'll also note that a large amount of current DC fast charging infrastructure in the US is already rated for 350 kW continuous load, so it's more of a matter of if the batteries can take it rather than if the chargers can give it. This overall bodes very well for EVs in the US.

[wankel7]

That is a lot of watt!

[OyCrumbler]

Originally Posted by wankel7

That is a lot of watt!

It really is. Since max charge rate usually directly corresponds to battery capacity when using the same chemistry and thermal management system, then this means that some of the giant battery packs out there could get a max charge rate that is absolutely ridiculous. For example, the Silverado EV has a battery pack capacity of 200 kWh. This would put the max rate with this battery technology just below the MW mark. Of course, no mass production charger currently hits that with the highest so far deployed being 500 kW. Even that would be below the baseline of a 200 kWh pack.

[OutdoorLover]

Originally Posted by OyCrumbler

https://electrek.co/2024/04/29/poles...utes-video-ev/

StoreDot is a battery startup that's been working on silicon anode batteries for a while now. Previous iterations of their battery have been individual cells or small stacks, so this is a bit different in being actually inside a battery pack for an EV as a prototype.

The big news here is that with a battery pack of 77 kWh capacity, the vehicle has hit a base line of charging rate of 310 kW throughout 10-80% which took about ten minutes with a peak of 370 kW (so 4.8 C rate peak, and 4 C rate minimum for 10-80%). That would be about 54 kWh added in ten minutes so in a 3 miles per kWh efficiency vehicle that'd be about 160 miles added in ten minutes and in a 4 miles per kWh efficiency vehicle, that'd be about 210 miles added in ten minutes. StoreDot has stated that they're looking at large energy density increases over the two or three years before they see this in a production vehicle. That's very promising as the energy density they're hitting is already quite high and silicon is a much cheaper anode material than graphite and meanwhile the battery uses nickel as the anode and lithium as the electrolyte so the underlying materials overall are quite cheap.

I'll also note that a large amount of current DC fast charging infrastructure in the US is already rated for 350 kW continuous load, so it's more of a matter of if the batteries can take it rather than if the chargers can give it. This overall bodes very well for EVs in the US.

That sustained high charging rate is unusual and outstanding.