This video is brought to you by Audible. The increased use of lithium-ion batteries
in everything from portable electronics to grid-scale energy storage has also spurred on
battery research. It's the never-ending quest for the next big thing. And for years, now
solid-state batteries have been promised as that thing. Companies like Samsung, Quantum scape,
and Toyota have all announced major breakthroughs in solid-state batteries, but why all the
interest and when will they actually arrive? I’m Matt Ferrell ... welcome to Undecided. Lithium-ion batteries have had a massive impact
on the world. Unlocking the potential in portable electronics, and more recently, electric
vehicles and grid-scale energy storage. However, the aspect that a lot of us worry
about when using a lithium-ion battery is safety, which is one of the big
advantages of solid-state batteries, combined with its high energy density,
as well as reduced size and weight. Current lithium-ion batteries use
a liquid electrolyte solution, and if they aren't properly managed,
or are damaged in an accident, they can swell from temperature variations or
even leak from mechanical stress. The result of that can lead to fire. On top of that, most
EVs employing lithium-ion batteries have a range of 300 miles or less, a long charging time,
not to mention the loss of capacity over time with each charging cycle. In some cases that's as
much as a third of capacity lost within a decade. But technology doesn't stand still. There's always
ongoing research and refinements that continue to make batteries better and more resilient. Looking
for new chemical storage technologies that can increase efficiency and safety while reducing
size, weight, and environmental impacts ... and that’s where solid-state batteries come in.
To understand why, let's take a moment to walk through the main difference between today's
lithium-ion batteries and a solid-state battery. In a battery, the electrolyte is the
conductive chemical mixture that allows the current to flow between the anode,
which is the positively charged electrode, and the cathode, which is the negatively charged
electrode. In the case of lithium-ion batteries, what separates the anode from the
cathode is a liquid electrolyte solution, while in a solid-state battery ... you probably
guessed it ... it's a solid electrolyte. Liquid electrolytes have some disadvantages
-- such as high flammability, risk of leakage, and electrolytic decomposition at high
voltages, while batteries that utilize solid electrolytes have been promised to lower costs,
and increase performance with incredible safety. If you're interested in a deeper dive,
I've got other videos on this exact topic, but one of the biggest benefits of
solid electrolytes is the ability to use other anode materials like lithium metal. The potential increase in energy density for
a lithium-metal anode battery has been known since the mid-1970s. But, it's also known
that lithium-metal anodes have problems when used with liquid electrolytes. In this case,
dendrites form when the battery is being charged. Dendrites are like stalactite formations
that grow from the surface of the anode, and can lead to reduced energy density and
can short-circuit the cell. The dendrites can puncture the separator between the
anode and cathode … and that’s when you get exploding batteries. It's widely believed
that to make a lithium-metal anode battery, it’s necessary to employ a solid-state separator
that is roughly as conductive as a liquid, resists to dendrite formation, and
doesn’t react with metallic lithium. Today, there are more than 25
kinds of solid-state electrolytes, such as oxides, sulfides, phosphates, polyesters, but ... I'm going to stop there so I don't
get any flashbacks to my 1970's childhood. The promise of solid state batteries has been
growing for years, like hundreds of years. It goes all the way back to Michael Faraday in
the 1800s when he laid the foundation with the discovery of solid electrolytes made
of silver sulfide and lead fluoride. Then, in the end of the 1950s, several electrochemical
systems used solid electrolytes. Later, in 1990, Oak Ridge National Laboratory developed a
brand-new version of solid-state batteries, which was later incorporated
into thin film li-ion batteries. But, since 2015, big players have been
investing a lot of money into this research. In this crazy mix of chemistries and technologies,
there's been a lot of buzz recently about new investments in the field. For example,
Volkswagen got a 5% stake in QuantumScape, Dyson acquired Sakti3, Bosch acquired
SEEO and Johnson Battery Technologies sold its solid-state batteries to BP. Some
electric vehicle companies joined this game as well. BMW established a partnership
with Solid Power, and Ionic Materials ... a company in my neck of the woods here in
Massachusetts ... worked with Hyundai. The reason for the interest from EV makers is
because of how much energy you can pack in per kg, which results in either a size and weight
reduction if you keep the same battery pack kWh rating, or increased driving range if you
keep the battery pack weight the same. So keep an EV battery pack at 70 kWh with less weight,
or increase it to something like 120 kWh with the same weight. And the benefits don't stop there.
You get batteries that operate within a wider range of temperatures, making them more robust, as
well as more eco-friendly compared to conventional batteries. There's been a lot of buzz and recent
announcements about solid-state batteries. Coming from people and companies that have
visionary teams and leaders pushing the envelope. But before I get into some of those announcements,
I always love learning about what makes them tick and I get a lot of inspiration from that.
It's perfect for today's sponsor, Audible. I listened to the audiobook Elon Musk by Ashlee
Vance, which gave me a deeper understanding for why Elon is doing what he's doing. It really
inspired me and probably will for you too. I've been an Audible subscriber forever
... seriously. I listen to audiobooks when driving ... or in the case of my Tesla, when
my car drives me ... and also walking the dog, mowing the lawn, you name it. They have
everything from non-fiction to fiction. With the subscription you get 1 credit every
month to use on any title, which are yours to keep forever. And there are thousands of titles
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makes you day so much more enjoyable. I love it. If you want to listen to Elon
Musk or any other audiobooks, go to audible.com/undecided or text undecided
to 500 500. Best part is that you can try Audible for free for 30 days. Thanks to Audible
and to all of you for supporting the channel. So what are some of these interesting
solid state battery announcements? Samsung, for example, has developed
a solid-state battery prototype that solves the dendrite problem by using
silver-carbon (Ag-C) to form the anode, achieving a battery that’s only five micrometers
thick. This ultrathin Ag-C nanocomposite layer allowed the company to boost energy density up to
900 Wh/L. For comparison, today’s best lithium-ion batteries have energy densities just below 700
Wh/L. The expansion of the company's prototype would enable an EV to travel up to 500 miles (800
km) on a single charge, with a lifecycle of more than 1,000 charges. You're talking about a battery
pack that would last for over 500,000 miles. From the startup perspective, California-based
QuantumScape, which is actually backed by Volkswagen, released a report in December 2020
showing that its solid-state cells can charge to 80% of capacity in 15 minutes, retain more than
80% of its capacity after 800 charging cycles, and has a volumetric energy density of more than 1,000
Wh/L. In its battery, nickel manganese cobalt oxide is used as the cathode and the anode is made
of pure lithium metal, like I mentioned earlier. As for timing, this isn't supposed
to hit initial production until 2024. Toyota stands at the top of the global heap
with over 1,000 patents involving solid-state batteries. The EVs being developed by Toyota in
partnership with Panasonic are supposed to have twice the range of a vehicle using a standard
lithium-ion battery. The most impressive part, if true, is that Toyota aims to retain 90% of the
battery's performance over a 30-year lifespan, and company officials say they'd be capable
of recharging from zero to full capacity in 10 minutes. Toyota is supposed to be unveiling
their solid-state-based EV this year, but they've also stated that it won't
be in mass production until 2025. And another company, Bolloré, is supplying
batteries for use in Mercedes Benz buses. Their lithium metal polymer (LMP) operates
at 80° C, so it self-stabilizes whether external temperatures are -30° C or
65° C. And it doesn't contain cobalt, nickel, or solvents. While they're
working at very low scale right now, their next generation products are expected to
start delivering to OEMs in 2026. The benefits of this type of battery could give electric vehicles
a wider operating range in extreme temperatures. You're probably seeing the
trend there. 2024, 2025, and 2026. That's when they expect these
batteries to start hitting production. Why is that? Well, there are still several
issues to iron out on this technology. One of which is manufacturing. Most of these
batteries require very different manufacturing techniques and machinery than tradition
batteries. They require extremely dry conditions during production, and the raw lithium
and material capacity needed isn't there yet. One company is taking a manufacturing
first approach to solid-state batteries, in order to reduce the cost of production.
The American company Solid Power has been all-in on solid-state batteries and
large-scale production processes for the past several years. In December 2020,
they begun pilot production of a 22-layer, all-solid-state battery cell (ASSB) at its
pilot line in Colorado. Their batteries are manufactured in a way that's compatible with
the industry-standard roll-to-roll manufacturing used in current lithium-ion production.
They've partnered with both BMW and Ford. And if you want to look a little further
out into the future, there's glass electrolytes to consider. The lithium-ion
co-inventor, and just general rock star, John B. Goodenough applied for a patent for this
new technology in 2020 with Maria Helena Braga. Researchers say the new battery technology
delivers three times the energy storage capacity compared to lithium-ion batteries.
Tests on this technology suggest “perhaps thousands” of charge and discharge cycles,
more than your typical lithium ion battery, all while withstanding a wider range of
temperatures between -20° C and 60° C. Carrying out this glass electrolytes
concept, the University of Bayreuth, together with Tesla and Varta Microbattery, will
develop novel battery separators made of glass. The project named GlasSeLIB (glass separators for
lithium-ion batteries) started in March 1st 2020. Considering the increasing
interest in solid-state batteries, governments around the globe have been putting
some money to make it happen. For example, the Japanese government has been supporting the
domestic development of solid-state batteries, to remain competitive against China. Japan is
organizing a fund of about 2 trillion yen ($19.2 billion) to promote decarbonization technology.
Policymakers will consider using those funds to provide subsidies of hundreds of billions of yen
in order to fund the development of new batteries. Although the COVID-19 pandemic has
had a significant economic impact, the potential market size of solid-state batteries
is expected to grow to over $6 billion by 2030. Regardless of the underlying chemistry or
manufacturing techniques, there's a lot of moving parts to bring solid state batteries to
market. All of these companies are still refining and testing their batteries. The mid-decade
release timelines doesn't mean that all of these will be producing at mass-production
scale with high yields and low cost. That will take time. When we’ll be seeing mass
produced solid state batteries in our EVs, portable electronics, and other devices ...
at an affordable price ... is still uncertain. But it's probably further
out than you might think. When do you think solid-state batteries will
become mainstream? Jump into the comments and let me know. If you liked this video be sure
to check out one of the ones I have linked right here. Be sure to subscribe and hit the
notification bell if you think I’ve earned it. And as always, thanks to all of my patrons
and a big welcome to new Supporter + member Lawrence Plotkin. Thanks to all of you for
watching. I’ll see you in the next one.
