Dallas-based start-up Solidion, a manufacturer of battery materials and components, has found a way to charge a lithium battery in five minutes. It can do this in all weather, including severe cold.
According to Interesting Engineering, this technology aims to charge an electric vehicle in about the same time it takes to fill a gas-powered car's tank. Currently, charging at low temperatures with any current battery is impossible.
"The system uses a graphene-based heat spreader. It quickly warms batteries before or during charging, while an integrated cooling system activates during discharge to prevent overheating," Interesting Engineering reported.
Graphene is perfect for this purpose because it has a "thermal conductivity of 5,300 W/m-K," which is more than the 410 Watts per meter-Kelvin of copper and four times lighter.
When you drive your EV, the battery system switches to cooling mode to prevent the battery from overheating. The graphene heat spreader absorbs the excess heat and directs it to the cooling system. This process protects the battery's performance while supplying efficient temperature control.
Additionally, the system switches between cooling when in use and heating when charging.
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Its website also noted that the system can potentially extend drive ranges from 20-30%.
Solidion's plan goes beyond the heat spreader. Since a graphite shortage is on the horizon, it plans to produce graphene, which is essentially a thin layer of graphite, from sustainable sources such as recycled materials and biomass.
The idea of a graphene or graphite-based heat spreader isn't new. Research has been conducted on it for many years, including studies in 2001, 2020, and 2021. Solidion has been able to put the theory into practice, and it has patented its technology.
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Solidion is also working on other EV battery solutions. According to Dallas Innovates, the company also manufactures silicon oxide anodes, which the company believes are needed to lower the cost of EVs.
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While the heat spreader isn't available yet, Solidion plans to commercialize it in two to three years.
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