The portable power station is initially used in some urgent situations.
But now, we’re using it in our daily life,
such as self-driving tours and outdoor camping.
Most of the battery cells in those products are liquid lithium-ion batteries.
But recently, we got a new type of battery, the solid-state battery.
It has higher energy density and better charging performance than the liquid battery.
Since it’s composed of solid-state materials,
it also has a significant advantage in size and weight.
The battery we got today is more likely a larger phone battery instead of the typical cylindrical battery.
There’re two metal tabs on the top, made of aluminum and nickel.
The large tabs make it more convenient to support more solder joints and high currents.
The size of the battery cell is 183 x 88 x 10.5 mm (7.2 x 3.46 x 0.41 inches).
And the weight is about 418.6g (14.77 oz).
It is called “Graphene All-Solid-State Battery.”
The single battery capacity is 31Ah.
The internal resistance is less than 1.2mΩ.
And the mass-specific energy is more than 280Wh/kg.
While the lithium-ion battery is generally between 200-260Wh/kg.
So, its energy density has exceeded the industry standard.
After testing, its internal resistance is only 1.21 mΩ,
which means it has excellent discharging performance.
Besides the higher energy density and better performance,
the safety is also better than the traditional battery.
We prepared two destruction experiments to show this critical feature,
including puncture and cutting.
Before the test, connect the battery to a multimeter to display the battery voltage.
The battery temperature is close to the ambient temperature, which is 27.9 °C (82.22 °F).
The current voltage is 3.98V.
Then, let’s puncture the steel nail directly into the battery,
completely penetrating the entire battery.
The infrared camera shows the highest temperature of the battery is about 42.5 °C (108.5 °F),
and the temperature around the puncture point is about 30.7 °C (87.26 °F).
At this time, the voltage is 3.96V.
Continue to puncture the second nail.
There’re two heating sources shown in the infrared camera.
The second one is not obvious.
And the temperature of the first puncture point dropped to about 39.4 °C (102.92 °F).
At this time, the voltage is 3.95V.
Continue to puncture the third nail.
The temperature of the third puncture point is the highest.
After about 2 minutes, the peak temperature reached 61.5 °C (142.7 °F).
And then decrease slowly.
At this time, the battery voltage is 3.91V.
After removing all nails and waiting for about 3 minutes, the voltage is 3.93V.
The maximum temperature dropped to 44.1°C (111.38 °F).
And the first and second heating source are almost disappeared.
Next, let’s fix another battery on the mount.
And the multimeter can display the battery voltage.
Before the test, the battery temperature is close to the ambient temperature,
which is 27.4 °C (81.32 °F).
And the voltage is about 3.22V, which means it’s in low power.
Use scissors to cut off the battery.
And we can see three different temperature data on the infrared camera.
The white 27.9 °C (82.22 °F) is the battery’s temperature.
The green 26.3 °C (79.34 °F) is the ambient temperature.
And the highest temperature is 35.2 °C (95.36 °F).
At this time, the voltage dropped to about 3.12V.
After completely cutting it off, the voltage is about 3.14V.
The infrared camera shows the highest temperature of the cross-section of
the battery is 31.4 °C (95.36 °F).
From the cross-section of the battery,
we found its internal structure is also stacked by multi-layer,
just like the traditional battery.
But since there is no liquid electrolyte, no liquid leaks out.
During the above two tests, there is no smoking, fire, or heat out of control,
which is pretty different from the traditional battery.
And higher safety standards are more suitable for portable power stations.
We know that when we take our mobile phone to a hot or cold environment,
it may suddenly shut down due to the battery.
So, let’s put the battery into the rapid temperature change experiment cabinet
to see what will happen.
Before the test, the voltage is 3.99V.
And set the temperature to -30 °C (-22 °F).
Wait for 12 hours, and then take it out.
Here is the test report of the charging and discharging process.
After waiting for an hour, we did the discharging test.
The discharge rate is about 31A.
The voltage range is 4-2V.
The discharging capacity is 20Ah, 47Wh.
After discharging the battery, let’s wait for four hours and try to recharge it.
The charging voltage is 4.0V, the current is 5A.
The charging capacity is 13Ah, 51.7Wh.
And then, set the temperature to 70 °C (158 °F).
Wait for 12 hours, and then take it out.
Here is the test report of the charging and discharging process.
After waiting for an hour, we did the discharging test.
The discharge rate is also about 31A.
And the voltage range is 4-2V.
The discharging capacity is 26Ah, 88Wh.
After discharging the battery, let’s wait for one hour and try to recharge it.
The charging voltage is 4.0V.
The charging capacity is 25Ah, 93.6Wh.
So, this solid battery can be stored in extreme temperature environments.
And it still works fine.
Meanwhile, it won’t bulge, and the shape won’t change.
But some traditional batteries have high chance to be bulged.
Well, that’s all tests we made for this solid battery.
No matter how we destroy it, there is no smoking, fire, or heat out of control.
And it works fine under extreme temperature environments.
As mentioned, it also has higher energy density, better charging performance, and longer battery life.
Hope this solid battery can be mass-produced and used in our personal devices as soon as possible.
OK. That’s all for today’s video.
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