WeLion New Energy is on a quest to make safer, better batteries. The company’s semi-solid-state cells could improve safety and offer greater energy density than lithium-ion batteries to power electric cars, boats, and drones.

From the EVs that carry commuters home to the ships that transport goods across countries, more and more vehicles around us are powered by batteries. 

Lithium-ion batteries are commonly used to power personal devices and vehicles today. But as the need for batteries surges, there’s a growing appetite for cells that can store more energy on a single charge.

Also, in lithium-based batteries the electrolyte, which facilitates ion transfer, uses a flammable liquid that can create a fire hazard. 

Several companies, including WeLion New Energy, are working to make solid-state cells, which use a solid electrolyte instead of a liquid one. This could increase the energy density of batteries, as well as improve their safety. Fully solid-state cells are extremely difficult to manufacture, though. So WeLion currently focuses on developing and producing semi-solid-state cells, which have a part-liquid, part-solid electrolyte. 

On that front, they have made steady progress. In 2023, WeLion released a battery pack in partnership with Shanghai-based EV-maker Nio, best known for its battery-swapping technology. The pack had an energy density of 360 watt-hours per kilogram (wh/kg), significantly higher than the 200 wh/kg average for lithium-ion packs today. That translated to a range of over 1,000 kilometers (621 miles). However, only about 200 of the battery packs were manufactured due to their high production cost, but they are still being used by Nio, WeLion says.

Source link