California-based QuantumScape, a startup making solid-state batteries for electric vehicles (EVs), has started low-volume production of its B-sample cells. According to the company’s Q3 report, it will soon ship them to EV makers for implementation testing.
The recent surge in EV adoption is an encouraging trend in electrified transportation. If EV adoption continues to increase, tailpipe emissions from cars and even trucks can be brought to zero in the coming years, giving a huge boost to net-zero targets.
However, apart from government policy and subsidies, the performance of EVs must also encourage users to adopt them. Although EV manufacturers equip their newer models with high-tech and smart features, the deciding factor in EV purchase remains the battery for potential customers.
Everything revolves around the battery pack, from deciding the range to charging time, the time required to travel to a destination, and the safety and sustainability concerns of an EV. California-based QuantumScape is on a mission to deliver the best battery solution to herald a low-carbon future in EVs and energy storage.
How it began
Founded in 2010, QuantumScape has spent most of the last decade perfecting solid-state batteries. Its major advancement came about four years ago when it developed a ceramic separator to replace the polymer separator conventionally used in batteries.
According to its website, the ceramic separator allows the replacement of carbon or silicon anode with lithium metal, which is much more energy-dense and stores more charge in the same volume. This also allowed QuantumScape to make an anode-less battery since lithium from the battery makes the anode on the first charge.
The ceramic separator also led to the company’s first battery prototype involving a single-layer cell, which then rapidly evolved into a 16-cell prototype. In 2022, QuantumScape achieved a 24-layer cell and unveiled its strategy to reach commercialization in three steps, identified by samples A, B, and C of its prototypes.
How it is going
By the end of 2022, the company had delivered its A0 cells to automotive partners and completed testing with an unnamed EV manufacturer by 2023. The company said the results were better than expected and soon rolled out its first commercial-scale product, the QSE-5.
Earlier in March this year, QSE-5 entered the testing phase and has now paved the way for low-volume production of B sample cells as well. The product specification sheet says that the QSE-5 B sample cell has an energy density of 21.6 Wh and a mass of just 71.8 grams.
In its Q3 report, QuantumScape added that the B sample cells have an energy density of 800 Wh/L and can fast charge from 10 to 80 percent in just 15 minutes. The battery design also ensures reduced volatility at extreme temperatures, thereby improving safety.
QuantumScape confirmed that the batteries have started shipping to EV makers for testing purposes, marking yet another achievement for the company.
Solid-state batteries are a major upgrade for EVs in addressing concerns about range, charging times, and safety. With its anode-less battery offering, QuantumScape could begin a new era of battery technology in the years to come.
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