Lithium-ion battery performance has stagnated in recent years, but technological breakthroughs promise new heights soon.
Batteries made of silicon instead of graphite (the material commonly used in battery anodes today) have been shown to have significantly higher energy densities and faster charging.
Kang Sun, CEO of Amprius Technologies, one of the companies working on this technology, said:
The company’s chief operating officer, Jon Bornstein, said, “We’ve demonstrated that it can charge up to 80% in less than six minutes. Amprius is already airbusU.S. Army, AeroVironment, BAE Systems On early iterations of silicon anode cells.
Sila Nanotechnologies, started by a group of former Tesla battery engineers, is also working on silicon anode technology. The company has been on the market since 2021 with Titan Silicon products used in WHOOP fitness trackers.
“Our first automotive customer was mercedes“They announced a supply deal to equip us with electric vehicles, starting with the iconic G-wagon,” said CEO and co-founder Gene Berdichevsky.
Porsche It also plans to use silicon anode technology in automobiles and has invested in Washington State-based Group14 Technologies.
“The head of R&D at Porsche said that at Porsche, the soul of the vehicle is the engine and transmission. They believe the next soul of the vehicle will be the battery cell,” said CEO and co-founder of Group14. ‘s Rick Lube said:
All three companies have announced plans to build gigawatt-hour-scale manufacturing facilities in the country over the next few years. The U.S. Department of Energy is providing funding as part of an infrastructure bill for President Biden to expedite his supply chain and production of U.S. batteries.
watch video Learn more about silicon anode batteries and why the automotive industry is betting on them.
