On August 16, CATL released the world's first 4C supercharged battery that uses lithium iron phosphate material and can be mass-produced - Shenxing superfast charging LFP battery.

This battery has three advantages:

1. Fast charging: Shenxing supercharged battery supports charging for 10 minutes, with a battery life of 400 kilometers

2. Not afraid of winter: Even in a low temperature environment of -10 ° C, it can be charged to 80% in 30 minutes. It effectively solves the problems of energy replenishment anxiety and battery attenuation under low temperature conditions.

3. Fast pace: Shenxing supercharged batteries will be mass-produced by the end of this year, and will be officially launched in the first quarter of next year.

Focus on overcoming low temperature charging problems

The Shenxing supercharged battery released this time has effectively complemented the two inherent shortcomings of lithium iron phosphate batteries in terms of technology.

The first short board is the problem of low energy replenishment efficiency of lithium iron phosphate batteries at low temperatures. Through the introduction of battery temperature control technology, CATL has enabled lithium iron phosphate battery (lifepo4 battery) to achieve "fast charging" at low temperatures.

The principle of this technology is simple and clear: Lithium iron phosphate batteries attenuate severely in low temperature conditions in winter, and CATL heats the batteries through battery temperature control technology, so that the batteries can quickly reach the optimal operating temperature range, thereby realizing fast battery life in the entire temperature range. charging effect. At the press conference, CATL also announced the effect of this technology - full temperature range fast charging, low temperature as normal temperature.

That is to say, at normal temperature, the Shenxing supercharged battery can be charged to 80% SOC in 10 minutes, which also meets the 4C charging standard it advertises. Generally speaking, 1C charging can fully charge the battery in 60 minutes, 2C Charging is fully charged in 30 minutes, 3C charging is fully charged in one-third of an hour, and 4C means that it can be fully charged in 15 minutes.

In a low temperature environment, CATL claims that it can be charged to 80% in 30 minutes even in a low temperature environment of -10 ℃. Fast Charge" level. Moreover, this technology also enables the battery to accelerate from zero to 100 times without attenuation in the low-temperature depleted state, and minimize the impact on performance.

The second shortcoming is that for the problem of low energy density of lithium iron phosphate batteries, Shenxing supercharged batteries have achieved a breakthrough in battery life through structural optimization.

Although CATL did not mention the energy density of the Shenxing supercharged battery, the cruising range can still be improved through structural optimization. Specifically, the Shenxing supercharged battery cancels the horizontal and vertical beams and end plates, and adopts integrated group technology to enhance the connection interface between the battery cell and the box body, which not only optimizes the battery structure, but also ensures the safety of the entire battery pack. Structural strength.

This makes the mileage of the Shenxing supercharged battery reach more than 700 kilometers, while before that, the battery life of the blade battery, which is also lithium iron phosphate, was 600 kilometers.

In addition to making up for the two shortcomings of lithium iron phosphate batteries, Shenxing supercharged batteries have also made corresponding guarantees in terms of safety. To ensure safety, Shenxing supercharged batteries use improved electrolytes, which effectively reduce solid-liquid The interface reaction generates heat. In addition, it is equipped with a high-safety coating diaphragm, thereby reducing heat generation and improving heat resistance.

In terms of battery management, Shenxing supercharged battery adopts intelligent algorithm to calculate and control the global temperature inside the lfp battery cell in real time and accurately. This strategy not only helps to give full play to the overcharging performance of the battery cell, but also takes into account the safe use of the battery.

Is it stronger than BYD blade battery and CATL Kirin battery?

Before the release of the Shenxing supercharged battery, BYD's battery products were well-known to the public, including "blade battery" and "Kirin battery".

In 2020, CATL will release the blade battery product, which adopts lithium iron phosphate technology, and will be installed on BYD Han models for the first time.

In the era when ternary lithium batteries were in power, the emergence of blade batteries greatly reduced the purchase cost of power batteries. From a technical point of view, blade batteries also optimized the structure and process of lithium iron phosphate batteries, but the most surprising What is commendable is that its main focus is security.

BYD has demonstrated various violent tests of the blade battery, such as acupuncture tests, heavy truck crushing tests, etc. The blade battery has shown the characteristics of no fire or explosion when squeezed.

In terms of battery life, the blade battery has reached the 600-kilometer level, but the attenuation is more serious in low-temperature environments.

So in contrast, the most significant difference between the Shenxing supercharged battery released this time and the blade battery lies in the performance at low temperature.

Another well-known battery product is the Kirin battery to be released in 2022, which is currently CATL's flagship battery product.

CATL Kirin battery is a ternary lithium battery. The main technological innovation lies in structural optimization and improvement of energy density. In terms of structure, Kirin Battery has increased the system volume utilization rate to 72% by virtue of BYD's third-generation CTP (Cell to Pack, translated as a moduleless battery pack) technology. For comparison, Tesla's unreleased 4680 battery is 63%.

The CATL Kirin battery also brings a system energy density of 255Wh/kg, a 10-minute fast charge (from 10% to 80%), and a cruising range of 1,000 kilometers. At present, the most representative model equipped with Kirin batteries is the top version of Jikrypton 001 with a nominal battery life of more than 1,000 kilometers. In addition, the pure electric flagship Ideal MEGA released by Ideal at the end of the year will also be equipped with Kirin batteries, which shows that Kirin batteries are mostly used in the luxury car market.

If CATL Kirin Battery focuses on technological breakthroughs, then Shenxing Superfast Charging LFP Battery focuses more on broader market demand. At this press conference, CATL Chief Scientist Wu Kai said: "The future of power battery technology must be oriented to the frontier of the world, and to the main economic battlefield. We want more common people to use cutting-edge technology and enjoy the benefits of technological breakthroughs." dividend."

Therefore, the Shenxing supercharged battery released this time is mainly to improve its reliability in low temperature environments while maintaining the cost-effectiveness of lithium iron phosphate batteries.

This also means that the big problems of poor battery life and slow charging of electric vehicles in winter in the future are expected to be solved by Shenxing supercharged batteries.

Many car companies are very concerned about Shenxing supercharged batteries, which are more popular than Kirin batteries. This is also the second card CATL has played for its new layout.

At the press conference, leaders including Changan, Huawei, and Chery all recorded short videos, which also indicates that Shenxing superfast charging LFP battery will become the new darling of 150,000-300,000 electric vehicles.

The most important thing is that compared to the long time between the release of the original battery and the mass production of the car, the Shenxing superfast charging LFP battery will be mass-produced at the end of this year and officially launched in the first quarter of next year.

Perhaps the new batch of electric car owners no longer have to worry about battery life and energy replenishment.