Photo: Nikola
Last week, when the industry was more focused on the impending reveal of the Tesla Cybertruck, a potentially game-changing announcement slipped nearly unnoticed: a new battery that could double the range of existing electric cars.
Just a few days before the Cybertruck sent shockwaves through the world, Nikola Motors announced it is about to introduce a battery that supposedly will revolutionize the industry. And not just any such tech, but one it claims is the world’s first free-standing electrode automotive battery.
Developed in-house, it is supposed to have four times the energy density of lithium-ion batteries, will cost 50 percent less to produce, and will double the range of electric cars while not adding a single gram to the weight of the vehicles.
For now, full details on the technology are scarce, as the company plans to announce them next year during the Nikola World event.
What is known is that Nikola promises an “energy density of 1,100 watt-hours per kg on the material level and 500 watt-hours per kg on the production cell level,” which should translate into passenger car ranges jumping from 300 to 600 miles.
“This is the biggest advancement we have seen in the battery world,” said in a statement Trevor Milton, CEO, Nikola Motor Company.
"We are not talking about small improvements; we are talking about doubling your cell phone battery capacity. We are talking about doubling the range of BEVs and hydrogen-electric vehicles around the world.”
Although a lot more needs to be clarified before we can rejoice at this incredible innovation, Nikola says it is already looking to share the tech with other OEM’s working in this field, provided of course they contribute something, supposedly cash.
To get the production lines rolling, Nikola also says it has already enlisted the help of “a world-class battery engineering team.”
Already the company's claims about the capabilities of the battery have been received with raised eyebrows by some scientists working in the field.
Developed in-house, it is supposed to have four times the energy density of lithium-ion batteries, will cost 50 percent less to produce, and will double the range of electric cars while not adding a single gram to the weight of the vehicles.
For now, full details on the technology are scarce, as the company plans to announce them next year during the Nikola World event.
What is known is that Nikola promises an “energy density of 1,100 watt-hours per kg on the material level and 500 watt-hours per kg on the production cell level,” which should translate into passenger car ranges jumping from 300 to 600 miles.
“This is the biggest advancement we have seen in the battery world,” said in a statement Trevor Milton, CEO, Nikola Motor Company.
"We are not talking about small improvements; we are talking about doubling your cell phone battery capacity. We are talking about doubling the range of BEVs and hydrogen-electric vehicles around the world.”
Although a lot more needs to be clarified before we can rejoice at this incredible innovation, Nikola says it is already looking to share the tech with other OEM’s working in this field, provided of course they contribute something, supposedly cash.
To get the production lines rolling, Nikola also says it has already enlisted the help of “a world-class battery engineering team.”
Already the company's claims about the capabilities of the battery have been received with raised eyebrows by some scientists working in the field.
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