Summary Reader Response Draft 4

The article ”Everything You Need to Know about Tesla’s New 4680 Battery Cell”, written by Field (2020), discusses how the new battery is a game changer. The new improvements and added features that Tesla has made to its battery has led to the Tesla’s 4680 tabless battery. There are many different kinds of battery currently out there in the market and the 4680 is a specific type of lithium-ion(Li-I) made by Tesla. Li-I battery is a rechargeable battery being widely used in many areas like electronics, electric vehicles and energy storage systems. However the 4680 is made specifically for the use in Tesla’s electric vehicles. The 4680 is a total redesign of the battery compared to its previous model 2170. The major improvements made to the 4680 are; more efficient battery performance and improved thermal dissipation than the previous models. Another reason why the 4680 is better, because the process of manufacturing the battery has become less complex.

The first improvement that the 4680 has is that it has more efficient battery performance. According to the Ecolithiumbattery webpage (n.d.), the biggest difference between the 4680 and its counterpart 2170 is that it can generate more energy with fewer materials. There are many advantages the 4680 has over the 2170. The 4680 can charge faster compared to the 2170 because of the use of all pole tabs as it allows the electrons to move more easily and with less resistance inside the battery. Field (2020), states that the 4680 is also 5.5 times bigger and made to store 5 times the energy compared to the 2170. Due to the size and power of the 4680, it also has a driving range of 16 percent more compared to its counterpart. 

The second improvement for the 4680 is the improved manufacturing process and reduced cost. According to the Tycorun webpage (2022), the main reason for this is because of the new design and science of the battery. During the manufacturing of the 2170, the production needs to be continuously started and stopped because it has a tab. A tab is a small metal strip that is normally placed at the top of the battery and acts like a bridge to connect the battery to each other. When manufacturing 4680, it can reach a very high speed without the need to be stopped as the 4680 is tabless and this allows the production process to be fast and less likely for there to be any defects with the battery(Tycorun, 2022). Since the manufacturing process is fast, more batteries in less time. Another reason why the manufacturing process is fast is because of their new dry coating process. Kazarian (2023), mentions that the old method of coating the electrode compared to Tesla's new method of dry coating is less efficient and slow. The old method involves a wet chemical slurry and drying it before the final assembly of the battery. However since the new method involves dry coating, this eliminates the need for the drying process. Therefore the new dry coating process leads to reduced cost, energy usage and manpower. 

Third improvement to the 4680 is its thermal dissipation. According to Field (2020), Tesla was able to manage the heat dissipations effectively because of its new tabless design. Bower (2020), mentions that the tabless design allows for decreased resistance inside the battery. This is possible because at each point of the 4680, there are cooling pads made of electrons which allow for heat to be pulled out from the centre of the battery to either ends of the battery. As a result, the tabless design helps in the thermal dissipation of the battery. Field (2020), also mentions that, although the 4680 is bigger it has reached similar heat dissipation compared to smaller batteries. 

With every new technology out there, there will always be some limitations and disadvantages to it. Unfortunately this is the same for the 4680. The drawback of the 4680 is that it is new. According to the Topwell webpage (2023), 4680 is still in its early stages and needs to be used more as it does not have enough reliability and needs to be tested more. Since the 4680 is a new technology it is even harder to come up with a production line as the designs are still all too new and it requires new equipment. As a result, Tesla can have trouble producing a large amount of 4680 batteries.

In conclusion, the 4680 is a superior battery compared to its predecessors like the 2170 battery. It might be the future of the next generation of electric vehicle cars. Even with so many promises this technology is still new and needs time to mature. Only time will tell how great Tesla’s 4680 can be.

 Reference

Bower, G. (2020, September 30). Tesla 4680 Cell: Thermal Analysis Suggests Unique Cooling System Design. InsideEVs. https://insideevs.com/news/446572/tesla-4680-cell-thermal-analysis-cooling-design/

Ecolithiumbattery. (n.d). What Are the Benefits After Model Y Change To Tesla 4680 Battery. https://www.ecolithiumbattery.com/what-are-benefits-after-model-y-change-to-tesla-4680-battery/

Field, K. (2020, Sep. 22). Everything You Need To Know About Tesla’s New 4680 Battery Cell. CleanTechnica. http://cleantechnica.com/2020/09/22/everything-you-need-to-know-about-teslas-new-4680-battery-cell/s

Kazarian, K. ( 2023, July 10). Dry Battery Electrode Process Minimizes Footprint, Energy Consumption. (2023, July 13). Powder Bulk Solids. https://www.powderbulksolids.com/drying-thermal-solids-processing/dry-battery-electrode-process-minimizes-footprint-energy

Topwell. (2023, June 21). Main Features and Advantages and Disadvantages of Tesla 4680 Battery. https://es.topwellpower.com/info-detail/main-features-and-advantages-and-disadvantages-of-tesla-4680-battery

Tycorun Energy. (2022, October 22). Tesla 4680 battery manufacturing techniques & market report.

https://www.takomabattery.com/tesla-4680-battery/#4680-battery-cell-manufacturing-process