Mercedes Benz have recently announced the launch of their brand new competence centre for battery development, a huge step in the journey to improve battery technology and performance in their vehicles. This in-house addition will open up further opportunities for Mercedes to develop and improve not just the batteries themselves, but the entire process of creating, utilising and recycling batteries at the end of their lifespan.
Named the ‘eCampus’, this competence centre has come about after two years of construction, located in Stuttgart-Unterturkheim. This centre will be used to search for breakthroughs in battery technology, particularly relating to chemical compositions and production processes, as well as increasing the battery energy density, enable quicker production and industrialisation of prototypes, and improve EV charging capabilities for speedier charging.
These improvements, as well as moving battery production in house, is also part of Mercedes-Benz’s aim to reduce the cost of EVs and battery costs by 30% in the next few years. By gaining better control of the overall batter value chain, they aim to improve the overall cost efficiency of the process.
Alongside their aim to reduce the overall battery costs, another concrete goal Mercedes have adopted for the next few years is to increase energy density by up to 900 watt-hours per litre through the use of solid electrolytes and high-silicon anodes. This could allow for longer ranges within their EVs, safer batteries overall and improvements to overall performance. Given that the average for density in EVs is around 700 watt-hours per litre currently, this improvement could be substantial.
On the new campus, Ola Kallenius, Chairman of the board of Management of Mercedes-Benz Group AG states:
“The opening of the Mercedes-Benz eCampus marks an important step in our sustainable business strategy. It is our ambition to also play a leading technological role in electric mobility. The eCampus brings us closer to this goal.”
By reducing reliance on outside and third-party companies, the entire process from innovation through to prototyping, production and distribution can be cut down considerably, ensuring that not only can Mercedes keep up with the ever-changing EV landscape and innovate as they do so, but reduce the cost for the end user, making EVs more accessible as a whole.
At the new eCampus, there have been reports of various labs within the property, including an Industrial Cell Lab, where focus will be on building and testing new compositions in battery cells on an industrial scale, giving a more accurate look at scalability of their ideas. There will also be a Chemistry Lab, where the initial cell composition and ideas will begin as part of the innovation process.
On the subject of the new centre, Mercedes-Benz have stated “The only way to scale up production effectively is through comprehensive knowledge of cell chemistry and design… The knowledge gained flows into series production of battery cells and partner companies – for use in future generations of Mercedes-Benz batteries.”
While Mercedes have worked with some promising start-ups on the production of new battery technology in the past, this new campus allows the manufacturer to keep everything in one place and dedicate more time and resources to innovating and improving their EVs. By reducing the time and parties involved in production, we could see some impressive new technologies on the horizon very soon.
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