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Solid-state battery technology is in the transition stage from mature technology to industrialization, and it is expected that after 2025, solid-state batteries with high energy density will be widely used and gradually develop to the next generation of lithium batteries.
At present, the commercialization of all-solid-state batteries is still facing great difficulties, and relatively speaking, semi-solid-state batteries with low industrialization difficulty have begun to be gradually implemented.
Cascade penetration trend of solid-state batteries:
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An overview of the solid-state battery industry
Solid-state batteries offer the advantages of fast charging, significantly increased energy density, and improved safety performance.
The key to solid-state battery technology lies in the innovation of electrolyte, and its ultimate goal is to achieve full solidification of electrolyte, gradually reduce the use of liquid electrolyte, transition from liquid to semi-solid, quasi-solid, and finally realize all-solid-state electrolyte.
When the high-nickel ternary + lithium metal material system is used, the energy density of the battery cell can exceed 400Wh/kg, which is far more than the mainstream liquid lithium battery in the current market, so as to extend the cruising range to 1000-1500km.
However, there are still several key challenges that need to be addressed to achieve widespread application of solid-state batteries.
Solid-state electrolytes have relatively low ionic conductivity at room temperature, which can affect the performance of the battery. Secondly, the interfacial impedance between the solid electrolyte and the positive and negative electrodes is large, which leads to an increase in the internal resistance of the battery, which further affects the performance.
The high cost of all-solid-state electrolytes is also an important factor limiting their widespread application.
All-solid-state batteries may become the battery technology of the future:
Source: China Chemical and Physical Power Industry Association
Solid-state battery technology roadmap
Solid electrolytes are mainly divided into two main categories: polymer electrolytes and inorganic electrolytes.
From a material point of view, it can be divided into three major systems: polymers, oxides, and sulfides.
Polymer systems belong to organic electrolytes, while oxides and sulfides belong to inorganic electrolytes.
Polymer electrolytes include ethylene oxide, polyacrylonitrile, polymethyl methacrylate, polyvinyl chloride, and other materials.
At present, solid-state battery companies around the world are conducting technology research and development under different electrolyte systems. European and American companies are more inclined to oxide and polymer systems, while Japanese and Korean companies are more concerned about sulfide systems.
Polymer solid-state batteries have the characteristics of good safety and high voltage resistance. At present, the mainstream solid polymer electrolyte is polyethylene oxide (PEO), and it has been commercialized.
Oxide solid-state batteries are mainly divided into thin-film and non-thin-film types. LiPON thin-film solid-state batteries have excellent rate and cycle performance, and are currently produced in small batches, mainly used in the fields of micro electronics and consumer electronics. However, its capacity is small and the cost of mass production is high.
Sulfide solid-state batteries have the highest conductivity and the greatest development potential, and are the most promising type of solid-state batteries to be used in the field of electric vehicles.
Semi-solid-state batteries are expected to be industrialized rapidly
Semi-solid-state batteries combine the advantages of liquid batteries and solid-state batteries, which have both the high energy density and fast charging and discharging capabilities of liquid batteries, and the safety and long life of solid-state batteries, which is a very promising transition route.
Semi-solid-state batteries are less expensive to produce than all-solid-state batteries and can be retrofitted and upgraded using existing production lines. In addition, the material cost of semi-solid-state batteries is also relatively low because they use fewer precious metals and rare materials.
Semi-solid-state batteries are highly overlapping with the existing liquid battery industry chain, and can be produced using existing battery materials and production equipment. This allows the industrialization process of semi-solid-state batteries to advance faster, while also reducing the risk and cost of technology iteration.
Taking Weilan New Energy as an example, the reason why its semi-solid-state battery can be quickly introduced to the market is mainly because it makes use of the existing liquid battery equipment and process as much as possible, and only 10%-20% of the process equipment requirements are different, mainly involving the introduction of solid-state electrolyte membrane, in-situ curing process and anode integration process.
As a transitional scheme between the two generations of battery technology, hybrid solid-liquid electrolyte lithium batteries can be divided into liquid electrolyte, mixed solid-liquid electrolyte and all-solid-state electrolyte lithium batteries according to the mass proportion of liquid electrolyte.
All-solid-state batteries are the ultimate goal, while hybrid solid-liquid electrolytes (semi-solid-state batteries) are used as an intermediate transition solution, which still contains a small amount of liquid electrolyte and requires the use of separators to avoid short circuits in the positive and negative electrode contacts.
Source: "Research on Solid-State Batteries for Applications" Li Hong
At present, the development of the solid-state electrolyte industry chain is still in the early stage, and the actual price of materials is quite different from the cost of raw materials, and the processing cost is also high. With the continuous improvement of technology and the realization of scale effect, semi-solid-state batteries are expected to be the first to be applied in various downstream scenarios.
Semi-solid-state batteries can be adapted to cathode and anode materials with higher specific capacity, thereby improving energy density, and is expected to further reduce unit costs, with strong market competitiveness, and the market penetration rate is expected to gradually increase in the future.
Solid-state battery industry chain and competitive landscape combing
The overall cost of solid-state batteries is mainly composed of two parts: battery material cost and battery production cost, of which material cost occupies a dominant position.
Material costs cover components such as cathode, anode material, separator (if required), electrolyte, current collector and housing, while production cost includes plant design/plant, energy, and personnel/production processes.
At present, the competition in the cathode material market in mainland China is fierce, and the top three companies in terms of shipments are Xiamen Tungsten Industry, Tianjin Bamo and German Nano.
From the perspective of solid-state battery manufacturers, there are about 50 companies, start-ups and university research institutes around the world that are working on the research and development of solid-state battery technology.
Toyota plans to commercialize all-solid-state battery technology as early as 2027 and launch all-electric vehicles equipped with all-solid-state batteries.
Overview of key research companies in the global solid-state battery:
Source: Qianzhan Industry Research Institute
Domestic battery companies generally adopt a gradual development route from liquid to semi-solid and then to solid.
The main domestic layout parties include research institutions such as the Institute of Chemistry of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Qingdao Institute of Energy of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the Ningbo Institute of Materials of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, as well as battery companies such as Weilan New Energy, Qingtao New Energy, Ganfeng Lithium, and CATL. In addition, there are Wanxiang Group, which mainly focuses on auto parts, and BYD, a new energy vehicle manufacturer, as well as Guoxuan Hi-Tech, Honeycomb Power, Huineng Technology, Lishen Battery, Jinneng Technology, etc.
SAIC, CATL and other companies are also actively exploring and developing in the field of solid-state batteries.
On June 30, 2023, Weilan New Energy successfully developed and delivered a 360kWh/kg semi-solid-state battery to NIO, marking an important breakthrough in semi-solid-state battery technology.
It is expected that in 2024, semi-solid-state batteries are expected to become the first year of vehicle installation, bringing new development opportunities to the automotive industry.
Although solid-state battery technology is still in its infancy, China's solid-state battery market is expected to continue to grow in the future, with shipments expected to reach 251.1GWh by 2030 and a market size of 20 billion yuan. #Solid-state battery##Lithium battery##Battery##New energy vehicle##Car##Article launch challenge##财经新势力#
Progress and prospect of solid-state battery installation of car companies:
Source: GGII
epilogue
As the electric vehicle market continues to expand and consumers are increasingly concerned about battery safety, the demand for high-performance, high-safety batteries is also increasing. As a battery technology with both high performance and high safety, semi-solid-state batteries can meet this market demand, especially in some fields with high requirements for battery performance and safety, such as electric vehicles, energy storage systems, etc. As a transition route for solid-state batteries, semi-solid-state batteries have a lot to offer!
Pay attention to Leqing's industry observation and gain insight into the industrial pattern!