CATL made headlines around the world last August when it introduced the Shenxing battery, an LFP pack capable of adding 400 kilometers of range by stopping just 10 minutes on the charger. If that was a mate, now, less than a year later, the checkmate arrives. Is called Shenxing Plusa battery that reaches four figures but recharges 600 km in 10 minutes.
Hadn't we seen that? Yes. CATL itself announced a battery pack with 1,000 km of autonomy and very fast charges in 2022 with the Qilin battery. But while that was an NMC (nickel-manganese-cobalt) battery, the Shenxing Plus is the first lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery to exceed the 1,000 km mark.
Both NMC and LFP chemistries are versions of the well-known lithium-ion battery. The NMC offers a higher energy density per weight than LFP batteries… but these are becoming popular in the design of electric vehicles due to their easier to obtain materials, thermal stability and longer useful life.
CATL ensures that the Shenxing Plus reach 205 Wh/kg (for this LFP chemistry the energy density ranges between 90 and 160 Wh/kg. They still do not reach the 255 of the Qilin, so for the same capacity it needs more weight, but it is still a brilliant achievement. They say that they have combined new materials and structures, based on a 3D honeycomb material for the anode and a granular gradation technology for the cathode. A one-piece cell housing (an industry first according to the company) optimizes internal space to achieve that. energy density.
Even 1,000 kilometer battery packs need to be recharged. And the Shenxing Plus achieves 600 km in about 10 minutes. A 1 km per second charging time. They achieve this, according to the brand, with a lithium-ion conductive coating, addition of transition metal elements and a new nanometric encapsulation to create a smoother and more efficient transmission between the anode and cathode materials. They say that the heat from high current charging dissipates quickly and safely.
CATL does not reveal when the Shenxing Plus batteries could reach production, but we give you some information. In August they presented the Shenxing battery. And just eight months later it has already been seen at the Beijing Motor Show in production models such as the Zeekr 01 or the GAC Aion Y Plus.
