Sakti3, a spin-out of Michigan University, has created a solid-state lithium ion battery that could double the range of an electric car or increase the time between charging devices.
The company is aiming to push costs down to about $100 per kilowatt hour. This would be a significant cut: Tesla, for example, is buying lithium ion batteries that cost $200 to $300 per kilowatt hour. Tesla’s current batteries allow the car to drive 412 kilometres (256 miles) between charges but could reach 772.5 kilometres (480 miles) with Sakti3’s technology.
Sakti3’s batteries are solid-state because they are built with both solid electrodes and electrolytes as opposed to current lithium ion batteries that contain a liquid electrolyte. The solid electrolyte has the added quality of making the battery less flammable and safer.
Created seven years ago, Sakti3 may have presented its technology to the public now but is still in a pilot stage. It has not announced any timeline on when the battery will be commercially available, but claims it has developed its technology with scale in mind.
The spin-out secured has funding of $30m, which it raised through three rounds in 2009 and 2010 from Khosla Ventures, GM Ventures and Itochu, as well as through a grant from the Michigan state.
