Toyota claims to have developed a technological advancement that will enable it to cut the weight, size, and price of batteries in half, which could signal a significant development for electric vehicles.
The second-largest automaker in the world was already working towards a goal of introducing upgraded solid-state batteries in cars by 2025, which have advantages over liquid-based batteries.
The Japanese business announced on Tuesday that it has made the process of producing the material needed to produce them simpler. The company hailed the discovery as a significant advancement that may significantly shorten charging periods and extend driving range.
If Toyota’s assertions were true, according to University of Birmingham business economics professor David Bailey, it might signify a turning point for the development of electric vehicles.
Toyota’s president claims that the company could now produce a solid-state battery with a range of 1,200km and a charge time of no more than 10 minutes since it had figured out how to make batteries more resilient.
The Financial Times, which broke the news of Toyota’s purported breakthrough, reports that the corporation anticipates being able to build solid-state batteries for use in electric vehicles as early as 2027.
As they promise to shorten charging periods, boost capacity, and lessen the fire risk associated with lithium-ion batteries, which employ a liquid electrolyte, solid-state batteries have been widely regarded as having the potential to revolutionise the field of electric vehicles.
However, the production of solid-state batteries has always been more expensive and difficult, which has limited their practical adoption.
But, Toyota now claims that it might potentially streamline the production process, making solid-state batteries potentially more accessible to manufacture than lithium-ion ones.
When compared to competitors in the market for electric vehicles, the Japanese automaker has been viewed as a bit of a laggard. It recalled 2,700 of its first electric vehicles (the bZ4X) in June of last year over worries that the wheels would come off.
Despite this, Toyota believes that, after 2028, it will be possible to produce an advanced solid-state battery with a range of more than 1,448 km in part due to lighter, simpler, and vehicles with fewer parts.
