Tesla To Get Into LFP Battery Production — As Max Holland Predicted 4 Years Ago

Join daily news updates from CleanTechnica on e mail. Or follow us on Google News!

I recall within the early days of the fashionable electrical car period when the Tesla Mannequin S and the BYD e6 had been prime promoting electrical automobiles. The BYD e6? Properly, if , . Should you weren’t round again then, and even in the event you had been and wish a refresher, let’s get into that first. The Mannequin S — nicely, everybody is aware of about that, it was tremendous quick and enjoyable. The e6 was chunky and was throttled to not help you speed up quick. It was bizarre. Nonetheless, due to all of the guardrails put round it, it had sufficient vary and usefulness at a good worth that it was a preferred automobile for taxis.

One core distinction between the 2 automobiles had been their battery chemistries. The Mannequin S was utilizing a high-energy-density nickel-cobalt-aluminum (NCA) battery chemistry whereas the BYD e6 was utilizing a low-energy-density lithium-iron-phosphate (LiFePO or LFP) battery. Oh boy, how do I bear in mind the Tesla followers trashing LFP battery chemistry! I may go on and on about the way it was ridiculed and the way Tesla followers claimed you could possibly by no means make electrical automobile with it. However the chemistry was cheaper, even in the event you couldn’t pack as a lot electrical energy in the identical measurement pack.

Progressively, battery design and manufacturing improved, and LFP power density obtained higher and higher, whereas nonetheless being comparatively low-cost. Ultimately, actually, even Tesla began utilizing LFP batteries in its cheaper fashions. Main battery makers began making LFP batteries an increasing number of, too. However in the event you’ve been paying shut consideration over the previous decade or so, all that already, proper? On to the information.

The information is that it now seems like Tesla will begin producing its personal LFP batteries in-house, or not less than its personal LFP cathodes. Zachary Visconti spotted that Tesla has posted a brand new job itemizing on its careers web site — a job opening for a Senior Cell Supplies Engineer place particularly for an LFP cathode program. For extra element, right here’s a part of the job description: “Your duty will probably be spearheading cross-functional staff validation efforts of our LFP cathode supplies, creating new materials and electrochemical assessments to speed up qualification time and produce our staff’s experience in supplies and electrochemical information interpretation to the subsequent degree.

What You’ll Do

Speed up screening and validation of LFP cathode
Arrange and handle validation testing of lab to MP scale materials, electrode, and cell validation trials
Interpret electrochemical and materials/electrode characterization information and assign outcome variations to materials change, design change, meeting flaw, particular degradation pathways
Interface with our strategic companions and inner stakeholder by offering and analyzing key outcomes and dangers.”

Cool information. I recall, additionally, that when Tesla Battery Day was approaching 4 years in the past, our personal Maximilian Holland wrote a protracted piece explaining what he thought Battery Day would be all about — LFP batteries. Elon Musk responded that, though that wasn’t what Battery Day could be about, Max made some excellent factors.

No, however you make some nice factors. Vital to notice that iron’s price benefit is partly offset by elevated pack mass, so the totally thought of price is nearer to nickel. That stated, iron alleviates a lot of the scaling drawback.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) September 17, 2020

Because it seems, 4 years later, the battery trade is extra into LFP than ever and Tesla additionally continues to maneuver an increasing number of into LFP batteries. Who would’ve guessed it? (Aside from Max.)

“The company is also set to work with Chinese manufacturer Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited (CATL)with an executive from CATL earlier this year hinting at plans to develop low-cost batteries for a large-volume EV from the automaker,” Zachary Visconti provides. “A report from Bloomberg in January also said that Tesla would be buying machinery from CATL to build in-house LFP batteries for its Megapack, though it would be 100-percent operated by Tesla.”

We’ll see the place all of it leads, however with the Inflation Discount Act closely supporting reshoring of producing jobs within the US, particularly by the manufacturing of EV batteries and battery elements, I assume Tesla will probably be constructing out battery part and LFP battery manufacturing plans within the US in coming years and that is a part of that.