Photo: BYD
A report published on Tuesday indicated that BYD is preparing to start mass-producing solid-state batteries and sodium-ion cells starting in the second half of 2023. Hours later, BYD dismissed the rumors as fake news.
Li-ion batteries have got civilization so far, but the technology appears to have peaked, with an uncertain path of progress. New chemistries are needed to push the boundaries of energy density, safety, and durability. This becomes even more obvious when considering the ever-increasing price of lithium and the fact that it is becoming difficult to mine and refine without raising environmental concerns.
Battery companies are working on multiple fronts to find better solutions to power the electric vehicles of the future. Some believe the solid-state batteries are the holy grail, although nobody has yet found a solution to their main problem, the dendrites that kill them in an accelerated fashion. There are, of course, studies, but a solution to push solid-state batteries out of the lab and into commercial production is still years away.
The same goes for replacing lithium with other materials. Similar materials, like calcium and sodium, are prime candidates, but they introduce their own problems. Sodium-ion batteries, for instance, have a low energy density, about half that of their Li-ion counterparts. The research is ongoing, and scientists work hard to find the best combination of anode/cathode materials and the accompanying electrolytes.
CATL and BYD are known to have advanced with both solid-state and sodium-ion batteries. A recent report from the Chinese media surprised everyone after BYD was said to be close to mass-producing both technologies. According to LatePost, BYD is in the final testing stage with solid-state batteries at its Chongqing facility. The first model to adopt the new cells would be an SUV from its recently launched high-end brand Yangwang.
The same news outlet revealed that BYD’s Qin EV, Dolphin, and Seagull would also feature sodium-ion batteries. This would’ve meant BYD leapfrogged CATL and others in the industry in mass-producing sodium-ion batteries. It would’ve been strange since CATL demonstrated their first-generation sodium-ion battery in July 2021, while BYD did not show anything yet.
Like many things coming from China, it turns out the news is not trustworthy either. However flattering, BYD felt the need to deny those rumors. And it did so in the most brutal way, calling them “fake news.” It doesn’t mean that BYD is not working on said battery types. It most certainly is, but we believe it’s far from making them production-ready, as the original news suggested.
Battery companies are working on multiple fronts to find better solutions to power the electric vehicles of the future. Some believe the solid-state batteries are the holy grail, although nobody has yet found a solution to their main problem, the dendrites that kill them in an accelerated fashion. There are, of course, studies, but a solution to push solid-state batteries out of the lab and into commercial production is still years away.
The same goes for replacing lithium with other materials. Similar materials, like calcium and sodium, are prime candidates, but they introduce their own problems. Sodium-ion batteries, for instance, have a low energy density, about half that of their Li-ion counterparts. The research is ongoing, and scientists work hard to find the best combination of anode/cathode materials and the accompanying electrolytes.
CATL and BYD are known to have advanced with both solid-state and sodium-ion batteries. A recent report from the Chinese media surprised everyone after BYD was said to be close to mass-producing both technologies. According to LatePost, BYD is in the final testing stage with solid-state batteries at its Chongqing facility. The first model to adopt the new cells would be an SUV from its recently launched high-end brand Yangwang.
The same news outlet revealed that BYD’s Qin EV, Dolphin, and Seagull would also feature sodium-ion batteries. This would’ve meant BYD leapfrogged CATL and others in the industry in mass-producing sodium-ion batteries. It would’ve been strange since CATL demonstrated their first-generation sodium-ion battery in July 2021, while BYD did not show anything yet.
Like many things coming from China, it turns out the news is not trustworthy either. However flattering, BYD felt the need to deny those rumors. And it did so in the most brutal way, calling them “fake news.” It doesn’t mean that BYD is not working on said battery types. It most certainly is, but we believe it’s far from making them production-ready, as the original news suggested.
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