American General Motors plans to switch to cylindrical batteries for its electric vehicles. The manufacturer will see many benefits from this change. Other automakers have either adopted a similar strategy, or are considering it.
It is well-known that American car giant GM uses packet batteries made by LG Energy Solution. According to The Elec, citing industry source, GM’s decision to stop building a joint plant with LG led to cancellation of the plans for a new plant. The automaker is moving towards the final transition from cylindrical versions. These changes are expected to be included in future models.
According to reports, GM plans to choose 4680 batteries – similar to the ones used by Tesla. Other electric vehicle manufacturers, such as BMW and Volvo, are also interested in using them. According to the publication it is believed that 4680 battery are more suitable for electric vehicles than cylindrical versions.
For manufacturers of batteries, it is easy to produce anodes, separators, and cathodes as well as pack them into cylindrical containers. At the same time, cylindrical batteries have a lower “energy density” compared to packet or prismatic batteries, since there is quite a lot of free space when packed in large blocks.
These long cylindrical batteries, type 4680, have a maximum length of 80mm. They are more efficient because there is less room for storage. Special modifications make this option even more compact in Tesla.
General Motors seems to have decided to switch from cylindrical batteries to offset rising industry prices. Because cylindrical batteries are oldest, manufacturers have developed many ways to lower production costs.