we’d have EVs [electric vehicles] with 350 miles of range, and that’s the end of petroleum,” he said.
Typical lithium ion batteries such as the one Tesla uses contain a flammable liquid electrolyte, while solid-state batteries use a solid electrolyte that is comparatively safer. This also opens up the possibility of using lithium metal instead of a graphite electrode, as this has a higher energy density and longer cycle life. Recent improvements in electrolyte additives and ceramic shields could solve the problem of lithium electrodes sprouting fibres or “dendrites” that eventually short-circuit the battery.
Autolib, a Paris-based electric car-sharing service has already started using these solid-state batteries in its 3,000 or so cars. Bosch’s battery company, Seeo, claims to have developed prototype batteries with an energy density of 350 Wh/kg (watt-hour per kilogram). In comparison, the Panasonic 18650 cells that Tesla uses have an energy density of just 254 Wh/kg. Simply replacing Tesla’s current cells with these solid-state batteries (once they are ready for production) would help the firm go from a 100kwh battery pack to a 118kwh model – almost twice the improvement Tesla’s new P100D has made on its previous design.
Some believe such strategies could help produce safe batteries that can carry enough charge to really compete with petrol engines. Donald Sadoway, a materials chemist at MIT, says that achieving such high energy densities is key to widespread adoption of electric vehicles. “If we had batteries with [color=red]350 Wh/kg we’d have EVs [electric vehicles] with 350 miles of range, and that’s the end of petroleum,[/color]” he said.
emonstrating 1600 Watt-hours per liter (Wh/l) and 400 Watt-hours per kg (Wh/kg), with a roadmap to further enhance this performance. While currently demonstrating 3X – 5X better performance than other battery technologies on the market, the roadmap shows further enhancement effectively doubling that to (6x – 10x) performance,
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