Tesla’s 4680 Battery Development Status
◾️ Battery Type and Application Model
- 1865 Battery: Early battery models.
- 2170 Battery: Used on current models S, X, 3 and Y.
- 4680 Battery: Will be fitted to Cybertruck.
- Increasing the size of AA batteries used in daily life
◾️ 4680 Battery Features
- Size: 46mm in diameter and 80mm in height.
- Advantages: Energy density and cost savings over traditional 2170 batteries.
- Application: Currently on select Model Ys and Cybertrucks.
◾️ ‘Wet Electrode’ Process
- Battery manufacturing is basically a wet process
- In the wet process, a liquid solvent is introduced into the cathode and anode to dry the cathode at a high temperature of 200°C or higher, so a huge amount of electric power is required
◾️ Dry Electrode Process
- Tesla Acquires Startup called Maxwell Technology In 2019, Securing This Technology
- It is eco-friendly and reduces production costs because it does not use liquid solvents.
- 30% reduction in power consumption and 17% to 30% reduction in manufacturing costs.
- Yield problem due to technical difficulties, now dry electrode is introduced only to cathode.
◾️ 4680 Battery Production and Technical Issues
- Produced 4680 batteries at Giga Factory, Texas.
- Cybertruck, 1,000 weekly units and about 4000 monthly units.
- Goal: It fell short of the annual production plan for 250,000 Cybertrucks.
- Problem: Small amount of dry anode equipment and frequent repair problems increase costs.
◾️ Large-scale restructuring of battery business units
- Layoffs: Half of the employees in the battery-based division, more than 20% of the employees in the 4680 division.
- Remaining personnel: approximately 800 people left in 4680 division.
◾️ 4680 Battery Technical Achievements
- Introduction of dry process: introduced only for cathode, anode still uses wet electrode.
- Production goal: Improving the yield of 4680 batteries is key.
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