A handful of days ago, an expert in the matter explained to the Financial Times than the famous solid-state batteriespresented as the next real revolution in automotive electrificationwere not quite ready to upset the market or habits.
Lithium, despite the difficulties it poses, particularly with regard to its supply et its recycling, therefore seems to have a few bright days ahead of it. A major player in the market, Tesla has been promising for years a revolutionary battery and seems to approach more or less quickly an inclusion in its cars on an uncertain horizon.
The competition is also growing. And not just any: CATL, world leader in the fieldherself big supplier of Tesla and soon from BMW, which is full of praise for its solutionsannounced a few days ago that the Chinese brand Zeekr would be the first to adopt, en masse, its long-awaited new battery called “Qilin”.
If Zeekr is still unknown in Europe, the arrival next year under our longitudes of its 001 will undoubtedly be a good opportunity to test the Qilin in real conditions.
Comparisons and small tackle
Because CATL promises a lot for its new solution, as Interesting Engineering explains. A lot and, perhaps, enough to overcome some reluctance regarding the transition from explosion to electric.
According to the figures given by its inventor and thanks to a different arrangement of its cooling systems, the Qilin might thus be recharged to 80% in 10 short minutes: enough, if the infrastructures follow, to escape a little to the famous “anxiety of autonomy”.
The latter would also be rather sturdy, once more according to CATL. “With a record volumetric efficiency of 72% and a density of up to 255 Wh/kg, it enables the greatest level of integration in the world so far, and is capable of offering a range of more than 1,000 kilometres”describes the official press release announcing the partnership around the Zeekr 001, as well as another model called “009”.
Press release which, and this is probably no coincidence, even allows itself a comparison with Tesla’s much talked regarding 4680 cellwhich CATL nevertheless produces itself for the American manufacturer.
With the same size and the same chemistry, explains the text, the Qilin would be able to provide 13% more power than the 4680, which gives it superior performance in terms of material. battery life, charging speed, safety, lifespan, efficiency and low temperature performance. Just that. It remains to be seen how this will turn out on real-world roads, and not in a press release.
