Amprius Technologies announced the shipment of the first commercially available 450 Wh/kg, 1150 Wh/L lithium-ion battery cells. They will be used in a new generation of High-Altitude Pseudo Satellites (HAPS).
According to the company, those are the first commercially available battery cells with such a high energy density.
"Deployment of industry-disrupting battery cell in advanced aerospace application affirms Amprius as the leading provider of the highest energy density cells available"
A crucial element to achieving the result is Amprius' silicon anode (Si-Nanowire platform).
An interesting thing is that the company was able to achieve 450 Wh/kg just a few months after announcing the 405 Wh/kg product on November 8, 2021. In December, we also learned about the 370 Wh/kg version, which can be recharged from 0 to 80% state-of-charge in just about 6 minutes.
"This shipment represents the culmination of collaborative development and testing for this latest design win. The deployment of this industry-disrupting battery cell in an advanced aerospace application affirms Amprius Technologies as the leading provider of the highest energy density cells available in the battery industry today."
Jon Bornstein, COO of Amprius Technologies said:
“This advancement from the 405 Wh/kg product, previously announced on November 8, 2021, highlights the acceleration of our roadmap towards delivering products with unrivaled performance. Our proprietary Si-NanowireTM platform and the comprehensive solutions we have developed enable unparalleled performance and continue to sustain our product leadership.”
Currently, Amprius Technologies produces the battery cells at a limited scale at its facility in Fremont, California. Later this quarter, the company intends to select a location for its first high-volume manufacturing facility in the US.
There is no hint at the manufacturing capacity or whether the high energy-dense battery cells will find their way into all-electric cars, but we hope so.
Tesla's Elon Musk said in 2020 that 400 Wh/kg battery cells are just 3-4 years away, which would be 2023-2024. That would bring significant weight savings.
EV battery cells' weight at 400 Wh/kg (vs 260 Wh/kg):
- 75 kWh: 188 kg of cells (compared to 288 kg)
- 100 kWh: 250 kg of cells (compared to 384 kg)
- 150 kWh: 375 kg of cells (compared to 577 kg)
- 200 kWh: 500 kg of cells (compared to 770 kg)
