Solid Power, Inc., today announced its next major step in developing all-solid-state battery cells for electric vehicles, completing the installation of its pilot production line. With its EV cell pilot line, the Louisville, CO-based startup intends to produce silicon EV cells for internal testing before delivering them to automotive partners BMW and Ford to kick off automotive qualification testing, which is planned for the end of the year.

“Solid Power is encouraged by taking this next step on its automotive qualification roadmap,” said Doug Campbell, Chief Executive Officer of Solid Power. “The installation of this EV cell pilot line will allow us to produce EV-scale cells suitable for initiating the formal automotive qualification process. Over the coming quarters, we will work to bring the EV cell pilot line up to its full operational capability and look forward to delivering EV-scale all-solid-state cells to our partners later this year.”

Solid Power’s EV cell pilot line is designed to produce large-format sulfide-based cells in a manner that mimics existing traditional lithium-ion production processes. The initial cell design includes 40 double-sided cathodes and 41 anodes. When running at full capacity, the EV cell pilot line is expected to be capable of producing 300 cells per week or about 15,000 cells per year, with the majority of those being planned for automotive qualification testing.

Solid Power’s silicon EV cells are designed to power longer-range, lower-cost, and safer EVs. By using over 50% active silicon in the anode, the company has designed the cell for increased energy density, which is expected to correlate to longer driving ranges to address range anxiety, a key barrier to mass EV adoption.

“With the EV cell pilot line now installed, our next big challenge is commencing production at scale and building cells that meet the requirements necessary for us to enter into automotive qualification later this year,” said Derek Johnson, Chief Operating Officer at Solid Power.

Solid Power expects to be able to optimize its silicon EV cells for capacities ranging from 60 to 100 A·h. The company expects this flexibility to allow Solid Power to meet its automotive partners’ specifications while allowing for additional partners with distinct design specifications.

Founded in 2011 by Campbell, Conrad Stoldt, and Sehee Lee, Solid Power was spun out from the University of Colorado Boulder with funding from DARPA. In its all-solid-state rechargeable battery cell design for electric vehicles and mobile power markets, the company replaces the flammable liquid electrolyte in a conventional lithium-ion battery with a proprietary sulfide-based solid electrolyte. As a result, its battery cells are expected to be safer and more stable across a broad temperature range; provide an increase in energy density compared to the best available rechargeable battery cells; enable less expensive, more energy-dense battery pack designs; and be compatible with traditional lithium-ion manufacturing processes.

Since Futurride last covered the company, Solid Power announced in December the completion of its business combination with DCRC, resulting in net cash proceeds of $495 million to fund its product development and strategic growth plans, and began trading on the Nasdaq. In March, the company announced 2021 financial results and the completion of all planned 2021 milestones, including the start of production of 20-Ah high-content silicon anode cells on the company’s pilot production line. It also partnered with SK Innovation Co., Ltd. to validate that its’ all-solid-state cell designs and production processes are scalable and to produce EV-scale cells.

“As the pace of EV technology adoption continues to increase, we are seeing battery customers intensify their interest and commitment to our all-solid-state value proposition,” said Campbell of 2021. “To meet the anticipated demand, we are accelerating investments in our operations, production equipment, and technology development. While these actions will not speed up our timeline to complete automotive qualification, we believe they can lower the execution risk associated with our product development and associated revenue plan. We expect these efforts will also enhance cooperation with our current partners and give us the flexibility to onboard additional partners as we see fit.”

Its previous pilot production line had enabled the company to rapidly increase the scale and layer count of its prototype all-solid-state cells. Single-layer 0.2-A·h cells were quickly replaced by 10-layer 2-A·h cells. The flexibility of the line also allowed it to expand the footprint and layer count further, resulting in 22-layer 20-A·h cells. Once it hit the limit of its existing pilot line, it focused on the new EV cell pilot line capable of producing cells up to 100 A·h in capacity.

According to the company’s website, the silicon EV cell is currently delivering 390 Wh/kg, 930 Wh/L, 1000 + cycle life, and less than 15 min charging.