Founded in 2012, and counting among its shareholders the oil company BP and the manufacturer Daimler, the Israeli company StoreDot affirms that all that is needed is new partners interested in its XFC lithium-ion cells to start the commercial phase.
At the end of 2019, a demonstration of ultra-fast charging of a scooter battery was carried out live. In 5 minutes and 4 seconds, the pack went from 15 to 100%, gaining only 4 ° C in temperature during the operation. The experience was repeated a few months ago with a drone.
StoreDot explains this performance by replacing graphite in the anode with metalloid nanoparticles. This action would erase the resistance to recharging experienced today by conventional lithium-ion batteries.
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Another point put forward by the Israeli company, the production of XFC cells would not require major modifications at the level of the industrial tool. Enough to sweep away the fear for battery manufacturers of having to invest colossal sums to adapt to this new technology.
Start of production
Now that the major safety and lifespan issues have been resolved by StoreDot engineers, a first batch of batteries has just been produced in China at partner EVE Energy. It will serve as a demonstration medium available to manufacturers of electric vehicles and other industrialists using lithium-ion cells en masse.
The next step, scheduled for 2021, should allow StoreDot to focus on the second generation of ultra-fast recharging cells, with a predominantly silicon anode.
What the company, also backed by Samsung Ventures and TDK, is seeking to achieve is refueling electric vehicles as fast as refueling.
Author’s opinion
We would like to be very excited about this battery developed by StoreDot. The many announcements without follow-up in this area, however, require that we cautiously welcome this umpteenth communication from the Israeli company.
Its solid partners plead in its favor. How can we imagine that BP, Daimler, Samsung Ventures and TDK still endorse and finance several years after their arrival research which would appear without a future.
The future of XFC cells in electric mobility can be taken seriously when several different manufacturers have demonstrated their viability. Producing electric vehicles, Daimler should quickly open the list. The German group aims to launch in the short term, among other things, electric buses equipped with innovative packs. Here is a field of experimentation up to expectations around ultra-fast recharging batteries.
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