Gasgoo Awards 2022 applicant: Lithium-Metal Battery from SES

For the Gasgoo Awards 2022, Lithium-Metal Battery from SES has applied for the Top 100 Players of China's New Automotive Supply Chain. 

Photo credit: SES

Product: SES Lithium-Metal Battery

Description

Today, all countries in the world are accelerating energy transformation, transitioning from fossil fuels to clean energy, thus enabling sustainable development. Transportation is a key area of energy transition, and batteries are the key to realizing electrification. The world's major car companies have successively announced to increase investment in EVs, driving the explosive growth of lithium-ion battery production. However, after more than 30 years of development, traditional lithium-ion batteries have gradually reached a performance bottleneck, especially the limitation of energy density greatly restricts the range of vehicles.

Photo credit: SES

In the periodic table of elements, lithium is the lightest metal element. When applied to batteries, it can not only reduce the weight of the battery, but also give it an energy density beyond lithium-ion batteries. Therefore, it is believed that lithium-metal batteries are the endgame of batteries.

SES lithium-metal battery adopts the same cathode material as the conventional lithium-ion battery, but the anode is changed from graphite to lithium, and the non-flammable high-concentration solvent-in-salt electrolyte can be used in lithium-metal batteries more safely and stably, fundamentally changing the growth of lithium dendrites, and there will no longer be a needle-like structure that easily pierces the separator. In addition, SES lithium-metal battery solution includes AI software that monitors battery health, providing early warning of battery anomalies weeks before potential accidents or even longer.

Unique advantages

SES lithium-metal battery combines the high energy density of the solid-state lithium-metal battery and the high manufacturability of the conventional lithium-ion battery.To improve energy density, there are four ways to do this: 1. Better anodes 2. Better cathodes 3. Less inactive materials 4. Pack efficiency. While most improvements in lithium-ion to date have been from 2, 3, and 4 above, there has been little improvement in energy density from the anode, which is still mostly graphite (a form of carbon). Anodes are potentially far more disruptive than the ongoing incremental innovations which continue to happen in the cathode, and other parts of the battery to improve overall efficiency. If the energy density of traditional lithium-ion batteries is 260-280Wh/Kg, lithium-metal batteries start from 400Wh/Kg.

In November 2021, SES unveiled the world's first automotive lithium-metal cell. The preliminary test data is 107 Ah, 0.982 Kg, 417Wh/kg and 935Wh/L. It has by far the largest capacity of lithium-metal cells in the world. SES is now optimizing the cells of this specification. 

Moreover, SES lithium-metal battery can, to the largest extent, apply the traditional manufacturing process of lithium-ion battery in order to diminish the uncertainties that lie within.

With its leading technology in lithium-metal batteries, SES has attracted the attention of a number of major car companies. SES has signed A-sample joint development agreements with General Motors, Hyundai Motor and Honda Motor, marking the only three lithium-metal JDAs in the world today.

Application

The electrification is accelerating exceedingly, but this is only the beginning. Once the safer, higher energy-density and higher performance lithium-metal battery is commercialized, it can not only successfully facilitate the production of long range EVs, but also it can power the future of the transportation such as the eVTOL, intercontinental electric plane and electric truck etc.

Prospect

SES is preparing for mass production of lithium-metal batteries in 2025. In terms of cell technology, we are in the A-sample stage, and will gradually transit to B-samples and C-samples in the next few years. In terms of production and manufacturing, starting from the second half of 2021, SES is expanding its facility in Jiading, Shanghai. Phase 1 of the expansion was completed in March 2022, with a production capacity of 0.2GWh. Upon completion of Phase 2 in 2023, the production capacity of the facility will reach 1GWh, which is expected to be the largest lithium metal battery factory in the world.