Elon Musk has bet his fortune on the future electric cars, and he knows that Tesla has to stay on the forefront of battery technology. One of the most promises advancements in battery tech is graphene-based anodes, which have been proven to more than quadruple lithium-ion battery density.
A report from China’s Xinhua news agency claims that Tesla is working on a new graphene battery that could almost double the range of the Model S to some 500 miles. This follows up on Musk’s assertion that Tesla could offer a 500-mile battery “soon”, but only if it makes financial sense.
Graphene could be what makes long-range EVs finally viable, though the technology has been in the works for some time now. As well as increasing energy density, graphene also allows for faster charging of batteries, opening the ion-highway to faster fill-ups. Whichever company can come up with a long-range, fast-charging, and (most importantly) fiscally viable electric car battery will be at a huge advantage going forward. Tesla needs to be that company if the $5 billion battery Gigafactory is going to be the game changer Musk thinks it will be.
A 500-mile Tesla Model S would all but eliminate the effects of range anxiety and could give Tesla the means to dominate the growing electric car market. That would be more driving range than even most conventional cars offer, though the price would likely be in the six-digits…at least at first. The average driver rarely exceeds 100 miles of total driving per day, and 200 miles per charge seems to be the magic number the Tesla Model III is aiming for. Then again, Musk seems confident that there hasn’t been a legitimate battery advancement yet, and that when it does comes, Tesla will know about it first.
Could a graphene-anode battery be the technology that puts Tesla at its place on top of the EV market? Or is there another technology (like aluminum-air batteries) that Tesla is trying to develop?
Source: Gas2
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