The Weekly Potential #11
This week in the energy and materials industries.
Welcome to the 11th edition of The Weekly Potential, a newsletter providing you insights into the energy and materials industries.
Let's dive in! 🔋
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Industry Developments
SpaceX has reportedly entered into an agreement with South Korea's LG Energy Solution to supply cylindrical lithium-ion batteries for its Starship program, aiming to power both the primary and backup energy systems of the spacecraft. LG Energy Solution brings considerable experience in aerospace battery applications, having previously provided batteries for NASA's space exploration needs.
Li-S Energy has successfully conducted test flights of an uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) powered by their twelve-cell lithium sulfur battery pack using a semi-solid electrolyte. The test flights used 10 Ah cells with an energy density of 450 Wh/kg and assembled in a 6S2P configuration to reach a nominal pack voltage of 11.4 V. The test demonstrated the battery's potential for extended flight times, making it a promising candidate for applications in e-aviation, security, and defense.
Panasonic has commenced the mass production of its new 4680 cylindrical lithium-ion battery cells at its revamped Wakayama factory in Japan. These cells, which offer five times the energy capacity of the conventional 2170 cells, are designed for electric vehicles with extended range, reduced costs, and improved overall efficiency.
NOVONIX has entered into a binding offtake agreement with Stellantis to supply high-performance synthetic graphite for use in electric vehicle battery production. The agreement stipulates graphite supply from 86,250 tonnes up to a target volume of 115,000 tonnes of synthetic graphite material from 2026-2031.
Echion Technologies has inaugurated a state-of-the-art production facility in collaboration with CBMM located in Araxá, Brazil. This facility is dedicated to the mass production of Echion's proprietary XNO® niobium-based anode material, with a capacity to produce 2,000 tons annually, equivalent to 1 GWh of lithium-ion cells. Echion’s anodes can charge ultra-fast, maintain high energy densities even in extreme temperatures, and offer a cycle life exceeding 10,000 charges. Previously, Leclanché used Echion’s anodes in its batteries for heavy duty applications.
Tesla has announced its V4 Supercharger cabinets, capable of delivering up to 500 kW of charging power for passenger cars and 1.2 MW for the Tesla Semi. This improvement reduces charging times, allowing electric vehicles like the Cybertruck to charge 30% faster, while maintaining the 250 kW charge rate for the Model S, 3, X, and Y vehicles. The V4 cabinets are designed to support a wide range of vehicle architectures from 400 V to 1000 V.
Paper of the Week
iScience has published a perspective on how to evaluate battery innovation investments. Since battery innovation has become multidisciplinary it has become difficult to properly assess battery innovation.
The authors present five conceptual, descriptive, technical, and social frameworks that, taken together, provide a holistic assessment of innovation opportunities in the battery sector.
On the Go
On the latest episode from The Battery Technology Podcast, Jeff Helm of NanoGraf corporation discusses the the potential benefits and challenges of developing silicon-based anodes.
Read More
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