Perhaps the most intriguing Samsung battery teaser at the expo was the update on its solid-state battery development. For the all solid-state cells, Samsung is leveraging its years of experience in manufacturing multi-layer ceramic capacitors (MLCC), which are now in high demand thanks to EV applications.
Samsung knows how to produce solid oxide at high temperatures whose stability makes it a prime candidate to serve as the oxide electrolyte used in solid-state batteries instead of the flammable liquid one in current EV batteries. This breakthrough has allowed Samsung to develop solid-state battery pack with "a longer battery life achieved by the company’s proprietary solid electrolyte and anode-less technologies."
"The company is poised to see the completion of a pilot production line for all solid-state batteries and the start of a prototype production this year and plans on taking on a myriad of tests to ensure the completeness of the solid-state battery development," adds Samsung.
The battery maker also confirmed pilot production of LFP and nickel-manganese cells that don't require expensive cobalt, slated for manufacturing later in the year. Those will be aimed at energy storage, as well as the upcoming category of cheaper electric cars for the mass market that everyone seems to be moving on to next, including Tesla with the rumored US$22,000 Model 2.
Before the phosphate and manganese batteries, however, Samsung will start sample production of 46-phi cylindrical batteries, like the ones Tesla puts in the Texas-made Model Y. The pilot manufacturing will begin in Q3, but the fact that Samsung doesn't specify the length of the cells indicates that it may indeed be working on taller 4695 or even 46120 batteries with higher capacity than Tesla's 4680 ones, just as rumored before. If the verification stage of its cylindrical batteries goes well, Samsung's 4680 cells may still go to Tesla, with prospective 8 GWh to 12 GWh factory capacity, enough for over 200,000 Model Ys, for instance.
As for existing battery technology, Samsung unveiled a premium energy storage solution called Samsung Battery Box (SBB). It is a high-nickel battery pack system with the whopping 3.84 MWh capacity enough to power 400 homes every day.
Previously, Samsung said that it will announce the exact specs of its solid-state battery when the first prototypes roll out from the factory and it seems that this stage is now fast approaching.
Source: Samsung