Group14 silicon anode batteries

The relentless pursuit of improved battery performance is a driving force behind the rapid advancements in energy storage technology and Group14 silicon anodes are providing a 30% increase over Lithium iron graphite anode batteries. Nano silicon as an anode material for lithium-ion batteries [1], [2]  [3]  [4] has been in development for more than a decade. Others have developed Silicon anodes.

Researchers know the potential of silicon to significantly enhance battery capacity, with a theoretical specific capacity nearly ten times higher than that of the currently dominant graphite anode. Advantages of silicon anodes include

  • Superior lithium-ion storage capacity compared to its bulk counterpart. It is due to increased surface area and shorter lithium-ion diffusion paths.
  • Faster charging
  • Long life – higher number of charge and discharge cycles
Group14silicon anode diagram
A partner of Group14 showing the nano structure of silicon in the anode

Group14 Silicon Anodes for Batteries

In 2023, we reported on promising outcomes from Sila Sechnologies. More recent company achievements from Group 14 show major advancements and progress. Group14 has surpassed Sila Nanotechnologies and is rapidly scaling up production with multiple factories planned.

Chinese smartphones including Xiamoi, Vivo, OnePlus use silicon already for a 40% boost in battery capacity. The technology is expanding into other applications like EVs and AI data centers. Mobile phone batteries move from 4Ah devices to 8Ah batteries extending life by 40%, critical for AI-based applications. 

That change in mobile phones is likely to extend to EVs with increased density and faster (7C) charging with extended life. 

Group14’s marketing challenge is not with manufacturers. Manufacturers are already evaluating their product and trying to make their own product in house. However, Group15 lack public endorsements from EV makers. As in most industries not invented here syndrome is a alive and well.

Group14 Company Activities 

Group14 Technologies began commercial production in 2021 from its 120 metric ton pilot plant in Woodinville, WA. [5] Groupd 14 claims this has enabled all top battery makers and EV OEMs to be in evaluation and qualification for years. Group14 lead the others producing this new technology at scale. Will others catch up? Maybe not. 

Large Scale Production

Now, large-scale commercial manufacturing capability has been proven – with the first EV-scale plant in the world commissioned in September (2,000 metric tons/yr., 10 GWh) in Sangju, Korea. (JV with SK) [6] . 

Group14 also have 2 more same-sized modules (4,000 tons, 20 GWh) are due to turn on in 2025 in Moses Lake, WA – on a site already permitted for six (12,000 tons, 60 GWh): YouTube video.

They claim this manufacturing capacity is larger than the combination of what all others are forecasted to have in this time frame.

First Use In Mobile Phones

As is usually the case, new battery innovation starts in consumer electronics, moves to EVs and ultimately to BESS application.  Silicon anodes are no different.

The technology has already taken over the smartphone market in China. Two years ago, there were no silicon carbon batteries in smartphones. Today, you essentially won’t see a new smartphone there announced without a silicon-carbon battery featured in the specs [6] and this advertisement in India shows SiC batteries in OnePlus, Vivo (Oppo), Honor (ex Huwai) and Xiaomi  – the 3 largest Chinese manufacturers. And TDK just announced they are ramping production for later this year, which may be a leading indicator for adoption by Apple and Samsung. 

Nano Silicon Anode Use in EVs

As batteries find their use in consumer devices, they move into EVs and other battery uses. Molicel’s P50B in Q3 2024: [7] 

  • Similar life cycle range to iron-phosphate batteries
  • Double the power density 
  • Half the charge times of the best cylindrical lithium-ion batteries on the market today

Molicel is a larger Taiwanese company making batteries for many OEM manufacturers for use in motor vehicles and motorcycles. Their latest battery INR-21700-P50B is a 21700 style battery, 3.6V with a typical capacity of 5.0Ah, 18Wh and an Energy Density of 714 Wh/l or 265 Wh/kg with a discharge current of 60A. When you consider batteries in the latest Tesla of 4680 made in Austin Texas are about 200Wh/kg – you can see that a 30% increase in battery means extended range, with lower weight and longer battery life.

While high-end applications are the first use, these will be first used

Group 14 Increasing Commercialisation

No other silicon anode material supplier has this kind of third-party battery maker acceptance and traction. The result has been over $600M of “take or pay” contracts signed for the material.  More are coming, as getting an increase of 30% of battery density is a significant cost advantage. Group 14 has over 30GWh of orders. [13] Many of them are with companies targeting high value, high performance battery markets. [14]

The global demand for batteries far exceeds the production capacity of Group 14 or other silicon anode providers. 

Group14 Moses Lake new production

IEA predicts stationary storage will increase battery demand to over 500 GWh by 2030, which is about 12% of EV battery demand. [15]

Group14 Silicon Anodes part of IEA increasing battery demand
IEA projections under various scenarios show battery demand increasing.

Will Tesla Use Silicon Anodes?

An unnamed source in a report in October 2024 [16] claimed  Tesla aims to produce between 2,000 and 3,000 Cybertrucks per week using dry-cathode (4680D) cells for 100,000 to 150,000 vehicles. Tesla had said they would be able to produce 250,000 Cybertrucks per year but in late 2024, Tesla was run rate was 75,000 per year. Most expect them to double that in 2025. This means a doubling of current production using regular (second-generation) 4680 cells, also known as “Cybercells.” By 2026, Tesla will expand its dry-cathode 4680 cell lineup with four new variants. These are named internally NC05, NC20, NC30, and NC50, respectively, with NC standing for “new cell.”

Expansion of Silicon to LiOn Production

Group 14 claims their material is a drop-in to the billions of dollars of Li-ion capacity all around the world – so adoption is straightforward now that manufacturing capacity exists (at least from Group14). However, as we say in battery manufacturing, batteries are part science, part art form.

Battery Demand Increasing 

The renewable energy transition to the Energy Era 4 of is less than 10% through. Demand for batteries will continue to expand. We know incumbent consulting companies have consistently underestimated the demand for solar, wind, batteries and EVs. 

The electricity demand with AI datacenters will double over the next 5 years. Currently data centers consume about 5% of the total electricity in the USA. Prices are expected to fall, based on Wrights Law.

Battery falling prices according to Wrights Law
Battery prices to fall as they follow Wrights Law.

Battery manufacturers are in prime spot to capitalise on that demand.

Conclusion 

While solid-state batteries continue to dazzle the imagination, and sodium batteries will ultimately provide cheaper batteries and lithium sulfur provide higher density, silicon batteries are here now and are providing many of the performance improvements solid state and the others are just promising. 

References

  1. ‘A Brief Overview of Silicon Nanoparticles as Anode Material: A Transition from Lithium‐Ion to Sodium‐Ion Batteries – Fereydooni – 2024 – Small – Wiley Online Library’. Accessed: Jan. 24, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/smll.202307275
  2. ‘(PDF) SiO2-Based Lithium-Ion Battery Anode Materials: A Brief Review’. Accessed: Jan. 24, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/360270347_SiO2-Based_Lithium-Ion_Battery_Anode_Materials_A_Brief_Review
  3. D. M. Piper et al., ‘Stable silicon-ionic liquid interface for next-generation lithium-ion batteries’, Nat. Commun., vol. 6, no. 1, p. 6230, Feb. 2015, doi: 10.1038/ncomms7230.
  4. ‘Recent progress and challenges in silicon-based anode materials for lithium-ion batteries – Industrial Chemistry & Materials (RSC Publishing) DOI:10.1039/D3IM00115F’. Accessed: Jan. 24, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlehtml/2024/im/d3im00115f
  5. ‘Silicon for batteries moves to commercial production – pv magazine International’. Accessed: Jan. 24, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://www.pv-magazine.com/2021/04/13/silicon-for-batteries-moves-to-commercial-production/
  6. ‘Group14 Delivers SCC55TM to Over 100 Customers Worldwide’, Group14. Accessed: Jan. 24, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://group14.technology/resources/press-releases/group14-delivers-scc55-to-over-100-customers-worldwide/
  7. ‘Group14’s Silicon Battery Material Enables Breakthrough Power and Charging Performance’, Group14. Accessed: Jan. 24, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://group14.technology/resources/press-releases/group14s-silicon-battery-material-enables-breakthrough-power-and-charging-performance/
  8. ‘Enovix and Group14 Announce Collaboration to Develop Best-in-Class Silicon Batteries | Enovix’. Accessed: Jan. 24, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://ir.enovix.com/news-releases/news-release-details/enovix-and-group14-announce-collaboration-develop-best-class/
  9. ‘Tests confirm InoBat’s 31Ah Battery Offers a Groundbreaking Solution for the high-performance mobility markets’, InoBat. Accessed: Jan. 24, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://www.inobat.eu/newsroom/tests-confirm-inobats-31ah-battery-offers-a-groundbreaking-solution-for-the-high-performance-mobility-markets/
  10. ‘Battery Tech Silicon battery technology’, Sionic Energy. Accessed: Jan. 24, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://sionicenergy.com/lithium-ion-battery-technology
  11. [11] StoreDot, ‘StoreDot’s EV Battery Customization Takes Off: 5 Major Automakers On Board’. Accessed: Jan. 24, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://www.prnewswire.com/il/news-releases/storedots-ev-battery-customization-takes-off-5-major-automakers-on-board-302270023.html
  12. ‘Silicon Anode Batteries for EVs Are Ready for Production – IEEE Spectrum’. Accessed: Jan. 24, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://spectrum.ieee.org/silicon-anode-battery-2670396855
  13. G. Technologies, ‘Group14 Signs Agreements with Five Leading EV and CE Cell Manufacturers Supporting Global Electrification Efforts’. Accessed: Jan. 24, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/group14-signs-agreements-with-five-leading-ev-and-ce-cell-manufacturers-supporting-global-electrification-efforts-302162657.html
  14. ‘Group14 and CustomCells Sign a Multi-Year Supply Agreement for SCC55TM’, Group14. Accessed: Jan. 24, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://group14.technology/resources/press-releases/group14-and-customcells-sign-a-multi-year-supply-agreement-for-scc55/
  15. ‘Outlook for battery and energy demand – Global EV Outlook 2024 – Analysis – IEA’. Accessed: Jan. 24, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://www.iea.org/reports/global-ev-outlook-2024/outlook-for-battery-and-energy-demand
  16. Tesla Reportedly Planning Four New Variants of Their Dry Cathode 4680 Batteries for 2026 – autoevolution’. Accessed: Jan. 24, 2025. [Online]. Available: https://www.autoevolution.com/news/tesla-reportedly-plans-four-new-variants-of-their-dry-cathode-4680-batteries-for-2026-240848.html

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