E59: Dean Frankel - Solid Power Part II
Dean Frankel from Solid State Battery developer Solid Power is back for a longer complement to the short part I we recorded a few weeks ago. We review what makes a battery solid state, discuss Solid Power's plans to bring a much higher energy density battery to market. We get into the battery components and the lithium intensity of various cell designs. Along with lithium intensity we discuss the lithium chemical raw material supply implications to accommodate a meaningful entry of solid state batteries into the EV market. We review the options for getting lithium metal into a solid state battery and potential routes to the lithium sulfide which Solid Power will also require. Along the way we discuss the recent news stories that both BYD and Tesla have plans to implement a new LFP battery design to capture share in the EV market that were previously thought to require nickel cathodes. In addition to the LFP stories we discuss Dean's thoughts on GM's recent announcement about their NMCA plans. The podcast ends with one of the more interesting rapid fire answers I have had.