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6 comments — live from bluesky

the-oc.bsky.social · 1 · 19h ago
CATL is already selling silicon carbon anode batteries in their Qilin and condensed batteries.
Green Juice · 7 · 1d ago
almost ALL the innovation on batteries over the last 30 years has been about the _cathode_ until now! Group14 has invented a method to replace the traditional graphite anode with silicon, a material that can absorb waaaay more energy than graphite
Green Juice · 4 · 1d ago
they're not the first to see the potential of silicon anodes, of course. they just figured out how to make it work. the problem they solved is that silicon swells up when you charge it. swells enough to crack the battery. so what's their solution?
Green Juice · 3 · 1d ago
they make a scaffolding shell out of porous carbon and _grow the silicon inside of it_ if you leave enough air for the silicon to swell, the cage will prevent it from cracking the battery
Green Juice · 10 · 1d ago
maybe you don't care about the how. but you should care about the benefit: a 5x density increase in the anode translates to *40–50% higher energy density at the battery cell level* that means batteries are about to level up BIG TIME
Green Juice · 7 · 1d ago
"so my phone battery will last a lot longer?" yes, but think bigger. batteries are already dense enough to fly passenger planes. silicon anodes will add ~50% more density... by swapping out *one component* www.travelpulse.com/news/airline...
Green Juice · 6 · 1d ago
the average EV today has a range of ~250 miles. overnight, that can become ~375 miles.
Green Juice · 1 · 1d ago
now, not every battery will see a 50% increase. Group14 can dial down the silicon to graphite ratio based on the customer's needs. less silicon is a lower cost option. but this looks like a step change in battery density tech. the future is closer than you think.
Green Juice · 5 · 1d ago
oh, and one more benefit! essentially all graphite today comes from China. but silicon is made from quartz, which is literally just sand. Group14 is based out of Washington state. this is homegrown clean energy tech.
Green Juice · 2 · 1d ago
while you're here, check out my lefty climate newsletter, Green Juice! i've spent the summer naming the secret ways investor-owned utilities are failing and scamming the public -- www.greenjuice.wtf/double-dip/
Bethankit Hums · 1 · 19h ago
"The company said it expects the ES-30 to reduce aircraft operating costs by more than 40% compared with legacy regional aircraft." 40% is crazy!
Larry Cebula · 1 · 22h ago
I dunno. I have been reading breathless stories about big battery tech breakthroughs every 6 months for at least a decade. Instant charging! Huge price drop! Revolutionary new materials! And here I am still looking to charge my phone by 2 p.m. each day. Is this one legit, and it is coming soon?
Frank Wunderlich-Pfeiffer · 2 · 1d ago
It doesn't. Because silicon is already being used in anodes, because no technology changes anything over night and because not using anything as an anode also works and gives it INFINITE ENERGY DENSITY by this definition.
TheHaligonian · 1 · 1d ago
Enovix is doing something similar, I don't know enough to predict which is better. I believe there are a few others in this space. www.enovix.com/enovix-advan...
isaac · 4 · 1d ago
It's very cool tech! You might like reading this profile of several of the players. Amprius has been working on this since ~2010, so it's not quite so overnight but that doesn't make it any less cool.
Green Juice · 0 · 1d ago
good to know, thanks!
isaac · 3 · 1d ago
i think this is some of the hype gap, like your most 'in the know' nerds know and are wary of over-stating what it is, but it is true that it's a big deal if they can keep scaling it up to larger kwh sizes.
Green Juice · 2 · 1d ago
for sure, always need to maintain that healthy skepticism. but i was impressed by the turnkey nature of their tech (no new machines needed for a factory to incorporate it) and how many customers they've already acquired