CATL’s high energy density condensed battery technology is a step forward but unlikely to fly as an attractive alternative to existing aviation fuel technologies.

At the 20^th Shanghai International Automobile Industry Exhibition, CATL made several note-worthy announcements. As well as sharing further details of their sodium-ion battery plans, the world’s biggest battery manufacturer also released details of a new condensed battery capable of delivering 500 Wh/kg of energy density.

The announcement promised the ability to quickly scale production of CATL’s new high-energy density battery providing an opportunity to create solutions for the electrification of passenger aircraft. In explaining the technology, the battery manufacturer referred to “condensed state electrolytes” resulting in improved efficiency of lithium-ion transportation as well as boosting stability and safety. It appears the new technology is a form of semi-solid state battery that will seek to overcome some of the stability and production hurdles historically associated with solid-state battery technology.

The 500 Wh/kg is an impressive step up in energy density but still significantly short of competing with today’s jet fuel which offers around 12,000 Wh/kg (24x the rate). The economics for electrifying passenger aviation, an industry already operating on thin margins, seems out of reach even at these higher energy densities. The materials and costs associated with the condensed battery were not detailed, but it is unlikely that the new technology will do much more in the near term than demonstrate that potential to continue making marginal gains in energy density as new cathode, electrolyte and anode technologies are explored.

The most likely potential application for the new technology gains outlined by CATL is likely to remain in electric vehicles in the shorter term, with buses and heavy trucks benefiting from the increased range and power. Project Blue’s long-term outlook for electric vehicles forecasts that the electrification of commercial vehicles requires infrastructure that will lead to the emergence of a dominant technology platform. Hydrogen-based fuels cells have many potential applications, but if battery technology continues to evolve and improve it will dominate the infrastructure required to make the electrification of transportation scalable.