For electric vehicles, power batteries have an important impact on both battery life and cost. Having a battery that is cheap and can bring long battery life has always been the goal pursued by many battery companies and car companies. Recently, an American energy storage company named Next Energy (ONE) has launched an anode-free lithium-ion battery cell with extremely high energy density. very high energy density.
The company claims that its in-house developed 240Ah prismatic anode cell has a specific energy density of 1007Wh/L, which could be the highest energy density large-format battery ever produced. Although the company did not disclose how much the unit energy density will eventually be mounted on the power battery, this theoretical parameter does seem to be very good.
The high energy density is not the only advantage of this anode-free battery, as there is no need for graphite anodes and anode manufacturing equipment, and it is also expected to be half the price of conventional batteries. The company estimates that when mass-produced, the new battery could cost as little as $50 per kilowatt-hour, meaning even a high-capacity battery with 100kWh would cost as little as $5,000.
Compared with conventional batteries, anode-free batteries usually have lower cycle life, which limits their application prospects in the field of power batteries. However, the company has introduced a dual-chemistry battery architecture called "Gemini," which consists of a lithium iron phosphate battery and an anode-free battery. In daily short-distance traffic, the vehicle is powered by lithium iron phosphate batteries, while the anode-free battery will increase the overall energy density of the system and provide stable power output when long-distance travel (up to 724 kilometers of range) is required.
The company's strategy could theoretically reduce cycle life and peak power requirements by 90 percent, enough to commercialize anode-free batteries in electric vehicles. It is estimated that the life expectancy of the entire battery system can reach 400,000 kilometers, which is also far ahead of the current power battery.
Earlier this year, the company has received $65 million in financing from BMW, and the company's battery pack is also scheduled to be installed in the test car of the BMW iX pure electric SUV this year, with a goal of achieving a cruising range of 600 miles.
