If there are reliable high-power EV fast chargers everywhere and you can get about 100 miles of range in four minutes, do you really need such a big battery?
Ultra-fast charging battery cells from Cambridge, UK-based Nyobolt are not solid state cell are eagerly anticipated as a potential change for EVs, but they raise some of the same questions. Without being overly concerned about the cost, automakers are likely to reduce the bloat of batteries are getting bigger and bigger—create lighter, greener electric vehicles.
Nyobolt electric sports car prototype
Nyobolt says its 35-kilowatt-hour battery pack is compact enough to allow for a very light 2,750-pound sports car that’s 100 pounds lighter than Lotus’ original Tesla Roadster. They installed the battery pack into a prototype from Callum, the EV-focused startup created by former Jaguar design chief Ian Callum.
While electric sports car concept previewed last year, it’s now a drivable vehicle. The company says the prototype “will accelerate real-world testing of the technology, allowing OEMs to experience Nyobolt’s ultra-fast charging technology firsthand.”
Nyobolt electric sports car prototype
Nyobolt electric sports car prototype
Nyobolt electric sports car prototype
Mathematically, charging from 10-80% in less than five minutes means the Nyobolt pack is charging nearly 350kW for a significant portion of that time. Nyobolt says the first four minutes of the battery pack charging session—on the CCS connector—are maxed out at a constant current of 500 amps, adding 120 miles of WLTP range (which would equate to nearly 100 miles according to the EPA) in that time.
Nyobolt points to its niobium oxide anode material as the key to its low-impedance lithium-ion cells avoiding the concerns about cell degradation that often come with such charging speeds. The company says these 24.5 Ah cells have completed a fast-charge-depth-discharge cycle equivalent to more than 600,000 miles.
Nyobolt electric sports car prototype
Specifically in this application, Nyobolt’s battery cooling circuit combines a chiller and an AC compressor/capacitor to keep the battery temperature no higher than 60 degrees C (140 degrees F).
Nyobolt says it can produce batteries in small quantities within a year, enabling production of 1,000 packs by 2025, and is in talks with eight different automakers about using its technology in high-performance electric vehicles. As for whether that will make for truly lightweight electric cars, now more than ever, the issue is charging.
