Rebirth 08: Rise from copycat phones

Chapter 504: Epoch-making Solid-State Battery

Solid-state batteries have been around for a long time, and many companies around the world are currently developing them. Especially with the rapid development of the electric vehicle industry in recent years, this has directly stimulated major companies to increase their R&D investment in the battery industry.

However, solid-state batteries have many technical problems. Previously, major manufacturers have basically remained in the laboratory stage, making it difficult to carry out commercial mass production.

Therefore, before this, major manufacturers, including Hailan Automobile, actually invested their research and development in the battery field mainly in conventional lithium iron phosphate batteries and ternary lithium batteries.

Hailan Automobile has very advanced technology in the field of lithium iron phosphate batteries. In 15, it launched the second-generation lithium iron phosphate battery, which can achieve an energy density of watt-hours per kilogram and has very good safety. This battery is also the top lithium iron phosphate battery in the world.

However, such advanced lithium iron phosphate batteries have been abandoned by Hailan Automobile, and their technology has been transferred to Ningdai Battery, which continues to produce and supply other electric vehicle manufacturers. They have been used in many other brands of electric vehicles.

After all, although lithium iron phosphate batteries have poorer cold resistance and lower energy density, they are also lower in cost and safer, making them very suitable for use in electric vehicles in southern regions.

At the same time, Ningdai Battery also has its own ternary lithium battery, which has an energy density of up to 250 watt-hours per kilogram. It has better cold resistance and is more suitable for use in the north. However, due to the characteristics of the ternary lithium battery, its safety is slightly worse.

As for the safety of ternary lithium batteries and lithium iron phosphate batteries... In fact, they will catch fire when they collide. The main difference is that ternary lithium batteries catch fire and burn very quickly, giving the driver and passengers in the car less time to escape after the fire.

Lithium iron phosphate batteries burn more slowly, giving vehicle occupants a little more time to escape after a fire.

In short, one burns fast and the other burns slowly...both will burn!

Therefore, when it comes to the battery safety of electric vehicles, what is more important is not the type of battery, but a series of technologies such as battery management and battery safety.

Although both use ternary lithium batteries, the safety of ternary lithium battery packs provided by different manufacturers can vary greatly.

Even if the battery pack is from the same battery manufacturer, the differences in battery safety design among different electric vehicle manufacturers will lead to huge differences in battery safety among electric vehicles of different brands.

Therefore, when purchasing an electric car, please be sure to look for first-tier brands of power battery packs and electric car manufacturers.

HaiLian Automobile has the world's top standards in battery pack safety and battery safety design for electric vehicles.

Two years ago, Hailan Automobile officially launched semi-solid-state batteries to the market, and all its electric vehicle models have switched to semi-solid-state batteries.

Because the semi-solid-state battery developed by Hailan Automobile has higher energy density, better safety and faster charging speed.

The energy density of Hailan Automobile's semi-solid-state battery reaches 350 watt-hours per kilogram, far ahead of the energy density of various manufacturers' ternary lithium batteries, which generally have an energy density of more than 200 watt-hours per kilogram, and lithium iron phosphate batteries, which have an energy density of more than 100 watt-hours per kilogram.

The application of semi-solid-state batteries has also enabled some of Hailan Automobile's high-end models to have a pure electric range of more than 700 kilometers. Combined with super-fast charging technology, it has greatly alleviated mileage anxiety.

But even so, Hailan Automobile has not stopped its research and development in the battery field!

They continue to optimize and develop semi-solid-state batteries, trying to reduce costs and further improve technical parameters such as safety, cycle life, and charging speed.

On the other hand, we have not forgotten to develop solid-state batteries.

And now, they are finally reaping the rewards.

Bao Yongyan pointed to the battery pack in front of him and said: "This solid-state battery is our latest technological achievement. It uses our self-developed 'mixed oxide polymer' technology route. This is different from the sulfide, oxide and polymer technology routes promoted by other manufacturers. We developed it based on a new type of oxide polymer material from the Fairy Mountain Materials Research Institute as the electrolytic material!"

"The energy density of this mixed oxide polymer is very high. The first generation of products alone has reached 600 watt-hours per kilogram, and there is still a lot of room for improvement. The technical team predicts that after further optimization, the energy density can be further increased to 700 watt-hours per kilogram."

"In the future, we may even be able to make this battery more than one kilowatt-hour per kilogram... at least in theory it is achievable based on the current technical route."

"The energy density of the first generation of products is twice that of existing semi-solid-state batteries!"

“Not only is the capability density higher, but most importantly, the safety is also greatly improved!”

"In the process of developing solid-state batteries, we adopted a lot of new technologies, including new materials and new processing techniques, successfully suppressed dendrites, and improved the electrode preparation process through pre-lithiation technology."

"Coupled with the huge safety advantages brought by solid-state electrolytes, the safety of our oxide solid-state battery is greatly improved!"

“Its thermal stability is very high and its air stability is very good!”

"We have conducted a large number of safety tests before, and we can basically confirm that under normal circumstances such as puncture, extrusion, short circuit, etc., it will not catch fire like traditional batteries. We have conducted tens of thousands of various safety tests, and there has not been a single example of open flame!"

"Mr. Xu, look, this is the puncture test we are conducting. After the steel needle pierced the battery pack, although smoke came out of the battery pack, the internal temperature was still controlled within 50 degrees, and there was no open flame!"

"In addition, we have simulated various car accident environments and conducted various high-speed collision tests on the battery pack. In the case of a collision at 80 kilometers per hour, although the solid-state battery pack was obviously deformed, there was still no open fire!"

"This is the huge safety advantage of our hybrid oxide-polymer solid-state battery!"

"Of course, in some specific extreme cases, our solid-state batteries still have certain safety risks, but I use battery safety management technology to shield the safety risks in these extreme cases!"

"So we can boldly say that electric vehicles using our hybrid oxide polymer solid-state batteries are even safer than current gasoline vehicles under normal circumstances!"

Gasoline, when encountering high temperature open flame, will still catch fire and even explode... Of course, most of these appear in movies and TV dramas, and are relatively rare in reality.

Listening to Bao Yongyan's words, Xu Shenxue looked at the inconspicuous battery pack in front of him and felt a lot of emotion in his heart.

If this battery is really as Bao Yongyan said, it will bring about a new battery revolution and even an electric car revolution!

Electric vehicles using solid-state batteries cannot be said to completely replace fuel vehicles, but they can replace a considerable part of the market share of fuel vehicles.

Just imagine an electric car that uses a solid-state battery and has a pure electric range of one thousand kilometers or even one thousand five hundred kilometers... and then it can run hundreds of kilometers again after charging for ten minutes. What's the point of having range anxiety?

At the same time, safety is greatly improved, which can dispel people’s biggest concerns about the safety of electric vehicle batteries.

Coupled with highly intelligent driving, including L3 and even L4 level autonomous driving.

Xu Shenxue has already foreseen the scene where HaiLan Automobile will once again dominate the market!
The only problem is the cost!
"When can our battery be mass-produced and how much will it cost?"

Bao Yongyan said: "In terms of mass production, our hybrid oxide polymer solid-state battery has solved all technical problems, including materials and production processes. We can even now carry out small-batch production on the company's experimental production line. Of course, this production capacity will be very low and cannot meet the huge demand of our Hailan Automobile!"

"We plan to build a new solid-state battery factory, which is expected to be able to start small-scale production next summer and be installed in most of our high-end models!"

"In terms of cost, if the new factory is mass-produced, we expect the cost per kilogram to be about twice that of the current semi-solid-state battery. However, considering that the energy density of solid-state batteries is twice that of semi-solid-state batteries, the actual cost per watt-hour will not increase!"

"For example, the current Haier SLMC high-end model uses semi-solid batteries and has a pure electric range of 700 kilometers. If a solid-state battery is used to achieve the same 700-kilometer range, the actual battery cost will be the same!"

“At the same time, we can also save more weight and space in the car… because in fact, we only use half the weight of the battery to achieve a pure electric range of 700 kilometers!”

"If batteries of the same weight are used, the range can be increased to more than 1,300 kilometers, and the battery cost will increase by about two times!"

"We have estimated that, taking the Hailan SLMC as an example, if solid-state batteries are used and the range is 1,300 kilometers, the price can still be controlled at 550,000!"

Xu Shenxue said: "This cost is acceptable. You can try to release the relevant upgraded models next year!" "Also, you said that you still have an experimental production line. Don't just sit there. Start small-batch production. The low output is not suitable for cars, but it can be used on robots!"

Bao Yongyan was not surprised to hear what Xu Shenxue said. The battery department of Hailan Automobile has always provided semi-solid-state batteries to its sister companies.

All robots under Zhiyun Robotics use Hailan Automotive's semi-solid-state batteries.

In addition, the batteries of the low-altitude drones produced by Xiaojiang Technology next door also use the semi-solid-state batteries provided by Hailan Automobile.

However, Bao Yongyan said: "Although the amount used on robots is less, the production capacity of our experimental production line is very low..."

Xu Shenxue said: "It is only used on the flagship robot now. The sales volume of the flagship robot is not large to begin with, so a small production volume is enough!"

"Please work harder and complete the production of the experimental production line as soon as possible. I will let Zhiyun's robot business team contact you!"

“Next month, in mid-May, I will release Zhiyun’s flagship robot to the outside world!”

Bao Yongyan said: "Next month, it will coincide with the launch of our new concept car. We also plan to launch the new Hailan SEC high-end two-door hardtop sports car at the launch next month. The high-end model will also use solid-state batteries for publicity!"

"In this way, our Hailan's new high-end sports car and Zhiyun's flagship robot can be used to promote the solid-state battery field, paving the way for large-scale commercial use next year!"

Xu Shenxue then looked at the various safety tests of this mixed oxidized polymer with great interest!
The solid-state battery research and development department of Hailan Automobile specially selected various violent tests in order to demonstrate the advantages of solid-state batteries in front of the big boss, perhaps because the big boss came to inspect in person.

Various puncture, extrusion, and short-circuit tests are child's play... The high-speed collision test of a fully charged battery pack is enough to make Xu Shenxue worried.

When the test vehicle carrying a fully charged lithium iron phosphate battery collided at high speed, the battery pack was severely squeezed and caught fire directly.

Next was a test vehicle equipped with a semi-solid battery. It was also fully charged and had a high-speed collision. The battery also deformed after the collision and then began to slowly catch fire.

These two batteries are used by Hailan Automobile itself. Their safety is top-notch in the world, but they still catch fire in such violent tests.

However, although the battery pack caught fire, the burning speed was not fast. Even the active temperature control and fire extinguishing system in the test tool vehicle was still working under such extreme circumstances, which effectively suppressed the temperature rise of the battery pack and the speed of fire.

Hailan Automobile's various technologies in battery safety are still very advanced. In most cases, even if the car catches fire, it can give people in the car enough time to escape.

HaiLan cars are currently the safest electric cars in the world. This is not just an exaggeration, but a recognized fact by the outside world.

In order to demonstrate the safety of their own batteries, testers also selected ternary lithium battery packs from other manufacturers for testing. This battery pack caught fire more quickly.

But when it came time to test the solid-state battery, with the same test vehicle, the same body protection, the same speed, and the same angle…even though the solid-state battery pack had been severely deformed and even emitted smoke, it did not catch fire!

The active temperature control and fire extinguishing system that Hailan Automobile is so proud of is not even in use...

This violent test scene that actually simulates a real-life scenario is more intuitive than cold data or literal descriptions!
Nothing can better prove the safety of this solid-state battery than an actual violence test.

Now that Xu Shenxue is satisfied, he will naturally be stingy with the treatment of technical R&D personnel!

With a wave of his hand, the technicians in Hailan Automobile's solid-state battery R&D department all received very generous bonuses and stocks.

Apart from the bonuses, these stocks are also very valuable. After HaiLan Automobile is successfully listed, the original stocks in the hands of the R&D personnel present will be worth at least several million, and those of some technical backbones will be worth more than tens of millions.

Xu Shenxue was even more generous to the leading core scientists.

Deng Anyang, the core scientist who led his team to develop the mixed oxide polymer technology route, was directly rewarded by Xu Shenxue with stocks worth over 100 million yuan!

Focus on technology research and development, as long as you make great achievements, you can become a billionaire, this is Xu Shenxue's promise to his technical staff...

Generous treatment on weekdays and huge rewards after achieving results!
These are among the core driving forces for many technical personnel in Xu Shenxue's companies, especially some technical backbones and project leaders, to willingly devote their efforts to research and development.

Therefore, the technical personnel under Xu Shenxue are very proactive in research and development.

Even Xu Shenxue's method has made many companies outside envious and jealous... In the past ten years, countless companies, research institutions and even business schools have been studying the operating model, management style and corporate culture of Xu Shenxue's companies.

Trying to find the successful route for a series of cars such as Zhiyun Group, Hailan Automobile, etc.

Especially Zhiyun Group has been studied by countless people!

But the more I study, the more frustrated I feel!
Zhiyun Group's management style, corporate culture, and even scientific research model are no secrets, and many people in the industry can find out.

As for the management model, it is actually not too special. It is a very mainstream management model of high-tech enterprises, with business units, project teams, and a certain degree of flat management. It’s just that Zhiyun Group is larger in scale and the company’s organizational structure is more complex. But in the final analysis, it is still the same model that many high-tech enterprises often use, with no major essential differences.

Even its talent management does not conform to the principles of many so-called high-tech giants. For example, Zhiyun Group rarely lays off employees unless their abilities are really inadequate. Otherwise, it will not make random optimizations simply to save labor costs.

For example, the 35-year-old optimization that is common in many companies does not exist in Zhiyun Group.

Zhiyun Group is not afraid of high salaries for its employees, but is afraid of its employees’ incompetence… As long as the employees are capable, we will give them annual salaries of millions or several million without any hesitation!
Of course, all the employees who can enter Zhiyun Group, whether they are in R&D positions or other clerical positions, are top elites and rarely have insufficient abilities.

In terms of corporate culture, there is nothing special about Zhiyun Group. It is nothing more than some high-sounding slogans like "for a better future for mankind", which do not have much meaning.

The R&D model is nothing special. Everyone on earth knows that Zhiyun Group's R&D has always relied on spending money.

It is normal for a project to be developed in parallel on multiple fronts. There are a lot of messy R&D projects, which is like looking for a needle in a haystack!
But can ordinary companies learn this? They can’t…

Zhiyun has over 100 billion US dollars in R&D funding every year. What can you learn from it?

Zhiyun has failed in ninety-nine projects, but as long as one succeeds, it can make back double the money.

Ordinary companies will go bankrupt if a few projects fail, and will never be able to persist until a successful project comes out!
As for large companies, they can learn it reluctantly, after all, many large companies are not short of money and people, but so far no one has been able to learn it successfully.

Because there is a core factor missing here that is unknown to outsiders: Xu Shenxue’s scientific research system!
This is an important reason why people outside are helpless and difficult to understand about Zhiyun Group.

In the end, many people attributed Zhiyun Group's success to Xu Shenxue's personal strategic vision and leadership talent.

This is also the core reason why many people blindly worship Xu Shenxue.

This is also reflected in the fact that Zhiyun Group is listed in two places and is preparing to be listed on the domestic stock market.

Many people in investment institutions have a blind admiration for Zhiyun Group and Xu Shenxue, and believe that Xu Shenxue can lead Zhiyun Group to greater heights.

Therefore, although Zhiyun Group’s mainland listing plan is expected to raise a lot of funds, there are still a large number of investment institutions that have prepared huge funds to purchase Zhiyun Group’s domestically listed stocks!
If everything goes well, Zhiyun Group will officially launch its plan to go public in the country this fall.

At that time, ordinary domestic investment institutions and even ordinary investors can directly purchase Zhiyun Group’s stocks on the domestic stock market for investment!
This is an important plan for Zhiyun Group under Xu Shenxue to deeply bind interests with domestic financial capital!

(End of this chapter)