CATL One Shell Two Cells structural design standardizes lithium and sodium ion battery enclosures to improve electric vehicle production and grid storage durability
Chinese battery producer CATL announced it has developed a structural design for standardized energy storage enclosures that accommodates various chemistries. The system, called One Shell, Two Cells, allows for either lithium ion or sodium ion cells to be enclosed in the same standardized casing, without any adjustments to the thermal management or chassis structure. CATL stated that this design will ease the development and production of electric vehicles, grid stationary storage, and automated battery swapping infrastructure.
To shift an entire electric vehicle platform to a different battery chemistry requires expensive changes to the car's cooling loops, mounting brackets and structural framework. The One Shell, Two Cells eliminates these engineering expenditures. Automobile makers can develop a single universal battery pack format and utilize lithium or sodium cells within depending on the vehicle target market, vehicle price tier, or geographical region's demands.
The advantage of this adaptability will benefit electric vehicles operating in cold northern climates. Typical lithium iron phosphate batteries demonstrate dramatically decreased performance under sub zero temperatures. Sodium ion cells have a much better charge and discharge efficiency under extreme cold. Electric vehicle fleets operating in sub zero environments will be able to run sodium cells within this configuration without sacrificing physical interoperability at automated battery swapping points, which currently hold and manage sodium cells in lithium iron phosphate formats.
CATL also demonstrated significant durability improvement in its standalone sodium ion battery technology. The manufacturer announced it can offer 15,000 cycles in its most current cell technology, making the technology suitable and affordable for grid stationary energy storage. At a pace of a cycle a day, this would allow for over 20 years of constant grid use.
