China-based battery giant CATL unveiled Shenxing, a new LFP battery, on August 16. The battery can enable an EV driving range of 400 kilometers with one 10-minute charge. The company said the first car equipped with the technology will be available in the first quarter of 2024.
At a launch event on Wednesday, Wu Kai, CATL's chief scientist, said fast charging is the issue that consumers concern the most nowadays. The company's new product, which targets the general public, aims to solve the problem, he added.
According to Gao Huan, chief technology officer of CATL's China E-car Business, Shenxing is the world's first 4C super-fast charging LFP battery. It can reach a range of more than 700 kilometers on a single full charge, breaking the record for LFP battery performance.
CATL revealed innovations in the materials and techniques of cathode, anode, electrolyte and separator that enable the fast-charging battery. The company said it leverages the super-electronic network cathode technology and fully nano-crystallized LFP cathode material to create a super-electronic network. The network facilitates the extraction of lithium ions and the rapid response to charging signals.
As for anode, CATL said it used the latest fast ion ring technology to modify the properties of the graphite surface. The practice increases intercalation channels and shortens the intercalation distance for lithium ions, creating an expressway for current conduction.
Shenxing can work stably in a wide range of temperatures. CATL said the battery can charge to 80% state of charge (SoC) in 10 minutes at room temperature. The cell temperature control technology on system platforms allows a 0% to 80% charge within 30 minutes, even when the temperature is -10 degrees Celsius.
Gao said CATL plans to start the mass production of its new product at the end of 2023. The first EV powered by the battery will be available in the market in the first quarter of 2024. He also said the company hopes super-fast charging technology will become the standard feature of each vehicle.
Citing domestic EV battery installation data, China-based The Paper reported that CATL saw its installation grow by 18% year-over-year in July. However, its market share in China declined to 41.79%.
The company reached 6.86GWh in LFP battery installation last month. Its market share fell behind BYD to 31.69%.
According to The Paper, if Shenxing goes smoothly into mass production and enjoys adoption growth among EVs, it will rise to be a strong competitor in the mid-range battery EV market. Whether CATL can reclaim its LFP market share with the new battery remains to be seen.
