SES (formerly known as SolidEnergy Systems), a developer and producer of high-performance hybrid lithium-metal (Li-Metal) batteries, has launched Apollo, a 107Ah Li-Metal battery. The company states it is the largest of its type in the world and a breakthrough for the automotive industry.
The announcement was made at SES Battery World, the company’s inaugural Battery World virtual event which took place in the USA on November 3 and in South Korea and China on November 4.
According to SES, Apollo can deliver 107Ah, yet weighs only 0.982 kg, and has an energy density of 417Wh/kg and 935Wh/L. It also demonstrated similarly high capacity and energy density when tested at C/10 (10-hour discharge), C/3 (3 hour discharge), and 1C (1 hour discharge) at room temperature.
“There’s a race among leading global car makers and next-generation battery suppliers to develop and demonstrate the world’s first 100Ah Li-Metal battery. Today we did it. We will continue to work with our OEM partners to optimize this battery and bring it to commercial production. We are confident that we and our OEM partners will win this race, and be the first to commercialize this next generation Li-Metal battery,” said Dr Qichao Hu, founder and CEO, SES.
“These batteries will need to go through further testing and optimization, but we are very excited about the performance that they have shown. Batteries need to be capable of delivering high energy density over a wide range of temperature and power density. A car needs to work in hot and cold environments and perform seamlessly when driven fast or slowly. Solid state batteries can never achieve this performance at the level of our hybrid Li-Metal batteries,” he added.
SES is working with GM and Hyundai to deliver practical automotive A-samples, and aims to start commercialization of Li-Metal batteries in 2025.