Recently, LG Chem's plan to supply Tesla with ultra-high nickel NCMA batteries in 2021 has attracted market attention. So, what are ultra-high nickel batteries? What are NCMA batteries?
High-nickel batteries refer to lithium batteries with a nickel content of over 80%. For example, ternary 811 lithium batteries are high-nickel batteries. Simply put, high-nickel 811 batteries have a cathode material ratio of 80% nickel, 10% cobalt, and 10% manganese. This not only reduces the proportion of cobalt, making costs more controllable, but also ensures a certain level of energy density, significantly improving battery range, cycle life, and safety.
As the name suggests, ultra-high nickel batteries refer to batteries with a nickel content exceeding 80%, and coincidentally, NCMA batteries also have a nickel content exceeding 80%. However, NCMA batteries not only increase the amount of nickel but also incorporate some aluminum. NCMA batteries are no longer ternary batteries but quaternary batteries.
It is understood that aluminum plays a role in suppressing the formation of unstable impurities from cobalt, thereby reducing costs and significantly improving battery cycle life.
The difficulty lies in the fact that the more elements are added to the lithium battery material system, the more difficult it becomes to control and produce.
If NCMA batteries are successfully mass-produced, the market they will gain will be enormous, because NCMA batteries can reduce battery production costs, improve overall performance, enhance the competitiveness of battery companies and new energy vehicle companies, further seize the market share of fuel vehicles, and thus gain more development opportunities.
For example, looking at specific cost reduction data, the cost of NCMA quaternary lithium batteries can be reduced by more than 30% compared to the current mainstream lithium batteries!
