Comprehensive knowledge about 4680 battery-definition, composition and application

1.What is a 4680 battery?

The 4680 battery is a new battery technology which is introduced by Tesla. This battery is a rechargeable lithium-ion battery in its nature. The 4680 battery is a type of lithium-ion battery, but it is currently mainly used in the electrical vehicle industry. As a large cylindrical battery, 4680 has a cylindrical shape, and is much bigger than the other common cylindrical batteries such as 21700 and 18650 batteries.

2.What does 4680 mean? How many batteries does a 4680 have?

It means that it has a 46-millimeter diameter and an 80-millimeter height. Which shows that they have a very huge magnitude. According to reports until now 1 million 4680 batteries have been mass-produced off the assembly line.

3.What is the 4680 battery made of? Do the 4680 cells use cobalt?

The 4680 battery incorporates silicon into the graphite anode with higher energy density, and uses tabless technology inside, which helps to reduce internal resistance and reduce heat generation. Silicon is present in plenty in our universe. So it is easily available and lower in cost. The electrode in the 4680 battery is composed of nickel or manganese. So cobalt is not used in making the electrode material of the 4680 battery.

4.What is the voltage of the 4680 battery? How long does the 4680 battery last?

The nominal voltage of this type of lithium-ion battery is 3.6. It also has the same cycle life as that of the lithium-ion battery. Their lifespan up to 4,000 cycles or even more. That means this type of battery can be used for 10 years(4000/365≈10.96) before it's DOD being 80％, which is long lasting.

5.Are 4680 batteries in production? What are the application scenarios of the 4680 battery?

The 4680 battery is about to be mass-produced, and only Tesla has achieved 4680 loading on the market. It is estimated that by the end of 2022, the production capacity of 4680 batteries will reach 100GWh per year, meeting the needs of 1.3 million electric vehicles. They also will provide good performance and will be much safe to use.

It is believed that after their large scale production,4680 batteries may be used in power tools, laptops, etc. in the future, but 18650 and 21700 battery will be the mainstream for a long time. These batteries will be widely used in the electrical vehicle industry due to their low cost, high range and good performance.

6.What is advantage of 4680 battery?

There are many claimed benefits of 4680 battery. Some of which are mentioned below. These batteries have large size. Therefore due to increase in magnitude these have higher capacity than current lithium ion batteries being produced. It is claimed that these batteries have more power than the current lithium ion batteries. According to reports the charging rate of 4680 batteries is very fast. These can be fully charged within few minutes. The performance of the batteries having liquid electrolytes decreases in the chilly environment.

But 4680 batteries don't have liquid or gel-based based electrolytes. So their performance would be less affected by a cold environment. Which would be a great benefit of using 4680 battery. It is claimed that this battery has a very high range. This means that you can have more time to ride and enjoy your journey without the tension of being run out of capacity. The cost of 4680 batteries will be less and they will be readily available. The 4680 battery is eco-friendly and does not harm our environment because the cobalt electrode is not used in it.

7.Do the 4680 battery charge faster? How fast can the 4680 battery charge?

Yes, 4680 battery charges at a much higher rate. Because of their unique configuration, they have low battery charging time. According to some reports, the 4650 battery can be fully charged within fifteen to twenty minutes. This means you don’t necessarily need to charge the battery at home before starting your journey. You can charge it fully on the highway. This would be a great advancement in the EV battery industry.

8.Which is better 4680 or 21700? Are 18650 cells better than 4680 battery?

The ideal battery for the electrical vehicle industry poses the benefits of having high energy density, more power, more range, high capacity. It should be of lower cost and readily available for its production on commercial scale. In terms of above mentioned criteria for the quality of EV battery the 4680 battery is definitely superior to the 21700 battery. The reason is that these batteries have large magnitude. So they posses very high capacity.

They also have very high range. They are less expensive than 21700 batteries with improved performance. The 4680 battery charges in less time. So all these benefits of the 4680 battery make it a better choice than the 21700 battery. 18650 and 4680 batteries both possess almost the same nominal voltage. The 18650 cells have a 18-millimeter diameter and a 65-millimeter length, which means they have less magnitude than 4680 batteries.So they have less capacity.

Also, they have less range and don’t charge as quickly as the 4680 battery does. Because 18650 is the most popular cylindrical battery, the production standardization is high, and its production cost is actually low. The reason is that these batteries have cobalt in them which is very expensive and also hazardous to our environment. While 4680 batteries are eco-friendly and cheaper due to the absence of cobalt in them. So these are batter than 18650 battery.

However, although the 4680 battery has many advantages over the above two cylindrical batteries, it also has shortcomings. First, high nickel will make the interior of the battery more active, and it is a challenge to control the incidence of thermal runaway of the single cell. Secondly, the current yield and production capacity of 4680 are still in the climbing stage, and it will take time to achieve mass production.

9.Will my Tesla have a 4680 battery? How many 4680 batteries are in Tesla model Y?

Tesla will use the 4680 battery in the future to power their electrical vehicles. They are working on 4680 battery production which is still in the trial phase. And the large-scale manufacturing of the battery will be in one year or so. According to some reports about one million 4680 batteries are produced for near future by Tesla, these one million batteries will be used in Tesla model Y. Upgrading from the first-generation 18650 rechargeable battery to the third-generation 4680, Tesla has been focusing on the research and development of cylindrical battery technology, and its products are mainly equipped with cylindrical batteries.