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Automotive

Enovix's silicon-based EV battery hits 98 percent charge in 10 minutes

By Nick Lavars
June 13, 2022
Enovix's silicon-based EV battery hits 98 percent charge in 10 minutes
Enovix's battery technology could one day reduce the recharge times for electric vehicles to mere minutes
Enovix's battery technology could one day reduce the recharge times for electric vehicles to mere minutes
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Enovix's battery technology could one day reduce the recharge times for electric vehicles to mere minutes
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Enovix's battery technology could one day reduce the recharge times for electric vehicles to mere minutes

Charging times are a hugely important factor when it comes to driving the adoption of electric vehicles, and we're seeing exciting advances aimed at getting users back on the road with minimal delay. US startup Enovix hopes to play its part in all of this with a next-generation battery design, which it says can now be nearly completely recharged in less than 10 minutes.

Shaving valuable minutes off the potential plug-in time for electric vehicles is a common goal among battery scientists, and we've seen breakthroughs come from both research groups and private companies working in this space. This includes studies detailing aluminum-ion batteries and experimental electrodes that could cut recharge times to mere minutes, while startups such as StoreDot and big-name players like Volvo are also throwing their hats into the ring.

Technology outfit ABB has what it says is the world's fastest electric vehicle charger, with an ability to fully charge a car in 15 minutes or less. Enovix is working to undercut these figures with its proprietary battery architecture that features an EV-class cathode and anode made from silicon, fashioned into a "3D cell architecture."

We've seen silicon feature regularly across the past decade of battery research, with the material favored as an alternative to the graphite used in today's anodes due to its vastly superior energy storage potential. Enovix doesn't delve into the figures on this aspect of performance, only to say its battery design increases energy density, and can endure more than 1,000 cycles while retaining 93 percent of its capacity.

The company has been developing its technology through a grant program from the US Department of Energy, and hopes to offer a solution for not just EVs but broader energy storage applications. On Monday it announced it has demonstrated that its battery can be charged from zero to 80 percent in as little as 5.2 minutes, and to more than 98 percent in less than 10.

“Fast charge capability can accelerate mass adoption of EVs and we’ve been able to demonstrate a level of performance that meets and exceeds many OEM roadmaps,” said Harrold Rust, Co-Founder, CEO and President of Enovix. “EV manufacturers are in pursuit of batteries that support longer range, while the public and private sectors work to increase EV driver access to fast chargers. We’re proud to support these goals to help electrify the automotive industry and demonstrate our batteries are an exciting option to power long-range, fast-charging EVs.”

Source: Enovix

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AutomotiveSiliconBatteryBatteriesElectric Vehicles
10 comments
Nick Lavars
Nick Lavars
Nick has been writing and editing at New Atlas for over six years, where he has covered everything from distant space probes to self-driving cars to oddball animal science. He previously spent time at The Conversation, Mashable and The Santiago Times, earning a Masters degree in communications from Melbourne’s RMIT University along the way.

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pete-y
We need to stop and think about the supply to charge cars in minutes. We will be looking at major infrastructure cost to feed many KWh into a bunch of cars in minutes at the voltages most work at.
Nevertheless a combination of fast and slow charge batteries or battery/super-capacitor systems will certainly make the ecars more acceptable
Gizmowiz
If they can improve that by another factor of 2 in the near future then ICE has no advantage at all. In fact its more dangerous with gasoline so charging up will be saner and safer than gassing up without nasty fumes to breathe in.
guzmanchinky
It seems like we will solve the quick charging problem before we solve the extra grid capacity problem...
Jinpa
5,000 recharge cycles would be a minimum goal, with lots of varied temps and other condition challenges proved. Gest wishes, but good luck scaling and proving it.
Expanded Viewpoint
But... just WHERE do we get any net GAIN from EVs?? How much energy does it take to make these Silicon based batteries? Is it more or less than the total amount of electricity that they will ever store up over their life cycle? Where does that energy come from? Or are they going to be grown on trees and vines, ready to be put into use when ripe?? Why do 99.999% of people have such a severe case of tunnel vision all of the time? What is it that keeps their attention focused so narrowly, instead of looking at the bigger picture? It seems that the more myopic someone is, the less of a "visionary" they really are.
Bruce H. Anderson
The article does not mention how big the battery is. The assumption might be that it is the typical 80-100 KWH battery, but that is not clear. More power through any given point in a given amount of time, so the same power in a shorter amount of time, has serious infrastructure implications.
bwana4swahili
Now let's consider the infrastructure to implement all these wonderful charging stations...
ljaques
Fast charging is good, but the sacrifice of half to 80% of the lifetime cycles is atrocious. To charge that quickly requires max charging system setup, so is the grid capable everywhere? NO. Does the price make it easier to stomach? Probably not, they didn't mention it for SOME reason.
Not at all a fair trade to me. Hard Pass.
Captain Danger
Lots of naysayers in the the comments.
I think for the grid at least part of the solution is to store energy locally , perhaps in super capacitors or flywheels etc. Something that can be charged up over time and then rapidly discharged as needed.
For a residents the system could charge for 20 hours storing the energy to charge the car.
A "Gas" station my only have a %20 or less duty cycle allowing local storage of energy to build up to be released on demand.
I personally am not a EV fan but look at the advances made in the last decade. With the incentives and political climate at the moment solutions to problems are being solved.

Captain Obvious
This "gas station" paradigm needs to shrink. Most people will charge at home overnight, or at a street light tap or something. Long trips are the only time you'll need to fast charge. And you need to eat, and micturate anyhow, while your car charges.
I see the naysayers have already trotted out the obstacles. The grid won't handle it? Not today, in some places, but how fast are EVs going to take over the majority of vehicles on the road? And that nighttime lull needs customers.
They aren't cost-effective over their lifetime? Show your work, including your assumptions. One recent analysis figured in the cost of "lost time for charging".
Too expensive? Yeah, Teslas are, but wait til the Chinese cars get here, and all those battery plants come on line.