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Japan’s TDK claims a breakthrough in materials for small solid-state batteries, which the Apple supplier expects will significantly improve the performance of devices ranging from wireless earbuds to smartwatches.
The new material has an energy density (the amount of energy that can be compressed into a given space) of 1,000 watt-hours per liter, about 100 times that of TDK’s current mass-produced batteries. Since TDK’s launch in 2020, competitors have moved forward, developing small solid-state batteries with a capacity of 50 Wh/l, while rechargeable button cells using traditional liquid electrolytes offer a capacity of about 400 Wh/l, the group said.
“We believe that our newly developed solid-state battery material can make a significant contribution to society’s energy transition. We will continue to advance toward early commercialization,” said Noboru Saito, CEO of TDK.
The battery to be produced will be made of all-ceramic materials, with a solid oxide electrolyte and a lithium alloy anode. TDK said the battery has a high storage charge capacity, which enables smaller device size and longer operating time, while the oxide has a high degree of stability and safety. The battery technology is designed to be used in smaller batteries, replacing existing coin-shaped batteries in watches and other small electronic devices.
The breakthrough is the latest step forward for a technology that industry experts say could revolutionize energy storage but which faces major hurdles on the road to mass production, particularly in larger battery sizes.
Solid-state batteries are safer, lighter and potentially cheaper than current batteries that rely on liquid electrolytes, with longer performance and faster charging. Advances in consumer electronics have trickled down to electric vehicles, although the dominant battery chemistries for the two categories are currently very different.
The company said the ceramic material used by TDK means larger batteries will be more fragile, meaning the technical challenges of making batteries for cars and even smartphones will be insurmountable for the foreseeable future.
Kevin Shang, senior research analyst at data and analytics firm Wood Mackenzie, said “unfavorable mechanical properties” as well as the difficulty and cost of mass production are challenges in applying solid oxide to the smartphone sector.
Industry experts believe the most important use case for solid-state batteries may be in electric vehicles, as it allows for greater driving range. Japanese companies are at the forefront of the push to commercialize the technology: Toyota is aiming for as early as 2027, Nissan is aiming for the following year and Honda is aiming for by the end of the decade.
Automakers are focusing on developing sulfur-based electrolytes for long-range electric vehicles, an alternative to oxide-based materials developed by TDK.
However, there remains skepticism about how quickly the long-awaited technology can become a reality, especially the larger batteries needed for electric vehicles.
Robin Zeng, founder and CEO of CATL, the world’s largest electric vehicle battery maker, told the Financial Times in March that solid-state batteries don’t perform well enough, lack durability and still have safety issues. Zeng’s CATL was originally a spin-off of Amperex Technology (ATL), a subsidiary of TDK and the world’s leading lithium-ion battery producer.
Founded in 1935, TDK became one of the leading brands of cassette tapes in the 1960s and 1970s and has extensive experience in battery materials and technologies.
It has a 50% to 60% global market share in small-capacity batteries that power smartphones and is aiming to take the lead in the medium-capacity market, which includes energy storage devices and large electronic products such as drones.
The group plans to start shipping samples of the new battery prototype to customers from next year and hopes to enter mass production afterwards.
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