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Volkswagen Group and 24M Technologies to partner on next-gen EV battery manufacturing; investment and subsidiary

Volkswagen Group and 24M Technologies have entered into a strategic partnership to manufacture next-generation lithium-ion EV batteries using the 24M SemiSolid platform. The goal is to industrialize the 24M technology, a semi-solid process that is an improvement over the dry coating process (earlier post), in the automotive battery area.

The target is to generate considerable cost optimization in future battery production, by reducing material usage and eliminating several steps from the conventional production process.

As part of the partnership, Volkswagen will make a strategic investment into 24M. In addition to the direct investments, Volkswagen will establish a wholly-owned subsidiary that will, in cooperation with 24M, develop a SemiSolid battery cell production technology for automotive applications.

With EV demand on the rise, carmakers need battery solutions that are beyond R&D and can be implemented immediately and cost-effectively. The SemiSolid manufacturing platform delivers on both. Through strategic partnerships with energy innovators like GPSC, Kyocera, AXXIVA, LucasTVS, FREYR, Koch Strategic Platforms and now Volkswagen, 24M has built an ecosystem to rapidly scale the SemiSolid manufacturing platform.

The 24M mission is to develop a better, cleaner energy future powered by SemiSolid technology. Our relationship with Volkswagen significantly expands the 24M ecosystem. Their investment, collaborative development and ability to scale globally will accelerate the SemiSolid manufacturing platform to replace the conventional manufacturing process and fast track electric vehicle adoption.

—24M President and CEO, Naoki Ota

Prospective benefits include up to 40% less production area, considerable savings on investment and more efficient product recycling, as well as the reduction of the CO2 footprint of battery production. Implementing the process in large-scale production is targeted for the second half of the decade.

Completion of this transaction is subject to customary closing conditions.

Comments

EVUK_co_uk

More than a little confusing and disappointing: so it appears VW won't be rushing to roll out either their fully solid state batteries(Quantumscape) or "SemiSolid" gap-bridger until some vague point before 2030. I can't imagine that their Chinese or S.Korean competitors will drag their feet till then. I certainly hope they don't.
Paul G

Albert E Short

Certainly sounds like Quantumscape is not living up to the hype.

yoatmon

The whole matter appears rather puzzling when considering that 3rd party testing reveals even better data than claimed from its originators. Only recently QS claimed success on a 10 cell-pack with improved results. However, the stock market certainly does not reflect the trust that could / should be placed on quatumscape's achievements.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y1i2eC33ClY

yoatmon

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRnXhcGYzhg

SJC

What are QuantumScape’s Anode-Free Batteries and how do they work?
In an anode-free battery, the Li deposits on the bare current collector (CC)
in the first charge without any host materials
https://www.sphere-energy.e...

Account Deleted

It does not appear that use of the 24M Semi-Solid Thick Electrode manufacturing process precludes the use of the QuantumScape Ceramic Separator.
From 24-M.com website:
24M’s revolutionary manufacturing and chemistry agnostic platform support current and next-generation cell chemistries and technologies, such as Silicon Electrode, Dual Electrolyte System, and Pre-Lithiation implementation.
Note - the QuantumScape battery uses a ceramic separator and a polymer gel catholyte.
The 24M Dual Electrolyte System uses a non-porous separator (like the QS separator) and a cathode/catholyte (https://insideevs.com/news/343492/24ms-dual-electrolyte-system-to-enable-350-wh-kg-batteries/).
24M also has a patent that describes a “gel polymer additive” (patent no: US10957940B2.
It would be interesting to see if VW combines QS and 24M.

yoatmon

The prohibitive high price of Graphene has prevented its application in battery chemistry but its unparalleled properties literally scream for such applications. Since the discovery of flash Graphene in a Rice University lab, the price of Graphene has advanced to "dirt cheap".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GzDrnoGdLO4
QS would be well advised to cover the copper electrode (anode) with a Graphene layer. This would further reduce heat generation and allow even higher power charging subsequently reducing charging time.

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