A record-breaking electric vehicle (EV) battery, with an unprecedented volume utilization efficiency of 72 percent, an energy density of up to 255 watt hour/kilogram (Wh/kg), the world's highest integration level, and capable of delivering a range of over 1,000 kilometers on a single charge, was revealed by a Chinese company on Thursday.

The battery, named Qilin after a legendary creature in Chinese mythology, is expected to go into mass production in 2023, said Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Ltd. (CATL), China's leading automotive lithium-ion battery maker.

In 2019, CATL launched the world's first module-less battery pack cell-to-pack (CTP), taking the lead in achieving a volume utilization efficiency of over 50 percent.

The Qilin battery, or CTP 3.0 battery, with the third generation CTP technology, has a volume utilization efficiency of 72 percent and an energy density of up to 255 Wh/kg for ternary battery systems, giving it the highest integration level in the world, according to CATL.

The battery delivers 13 percent more power than the 4680 battery produced by global EV giant Tesla, with CATL saying it offers improvements in range, fast-charging, safety, service life, efficiency and low-temperature performance.

World's most integrated e-car battery

The CTP technology, which directly integrates cells into packs without modules to improve system energy density, simplify manufacturing and help reduce costs, features the CTP 3.0 battery with improvements in service life, safety, charging speeds and low-temperature performance.

The integrated energy unit, composed of the cell and the multifunctional elastic interlayer, builds a more stable load-bearing structure perpendicular to the driving direction to enhance the shock and vibration resistance of the battery pack.  

World's first large-surface cell cooling tech

The Qilin battery, with the world's first large-surface cell cooling technology placing liquid cooling functional parts between adjacent cells and expanding the heat exchange area fourfold, can support a hot start in 5 minutes and fast charging in 10 minutes.

According to CATL, in extreme cases, the battery can enable the cell to cool down rapidly, effectively preventing abnormal thermal conduction among cells. Moreover, it has also achieved thermal stability and safety for all chemical systems, making it compatible with materials with higher energy density.