Lilium, an aviation company, is developing an eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) aircraft with a battery supplied by Ionblox, previously known as Zenlabs. The eVTOL will act like a kind of electric air minibus for regional flights. The aircraft has a unique design that utilizes tiny, ducted electric "jets" instead of exposed propellers. However, this design places a unique strain on the aircraft's batteries.
To handle the kind of long-range flights Lilium needs to perform, the battery will need to have high specific energy, as well as a high power density to handle high-output VTOL flight phases. The battery will also need to be capable of high power outputs even at a low state of charge. To address this, Lilium has invested millions into a company called Ionblox which has developed a battery with a silicon-dominant anode instead of the conventional graphite anode.
The battery is capable of high charge/discharge rates and a solid 25% increase in specific energy compared to Tesla Model 3 batteries. The power density of Ionblox's battery can handle 3.8 kW per kilogram and still maintain a high output even at a low state of charge. The company has also tested its battery for longevity, finding that it still has more than 80% of its capacity after being charged and discharged 1,000 times.
Electric Aircraft Batteries
Lilium Announced its Working with Ionblox on its eVTOL Battery
Trend Themes
1. Electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing Aircraft (evtol) Batteries - Developing high-performance batteries that can handle the unique strains of eVTOL aircraft design like high specific energy and power density could be a disruptive innovation opportunity.
2. Silicon-dominant Anode Batteries - Using silicon-dominant anodes instead of conventional graphite anodes in batteries could be a disruptive innovation opportunity for increasing specific energy and charge/discharge rates.
3. High Power Density Batteries - Developing batteries that can maintain high output even at a low state of charge could be a disruptive innovation opportunity, especially for vehicles like eVTOL aircraft with high-output phases.
Industry Implications
1. Aviation - Developing batteries that can handle the unique strains of eVTOL aircraft design could be a disruptive innovation opportunity for the aviation industry.
2. Battery Technology - Using silicon-dominant anodes and innovative battery designs to increase specific energy, charge/discharge rates, and power density could be a disruptive innovation opportunity for the battery technology industry.
3. Transportation - Developing high-output batteries that perform well even at low states of charge could be a disruptive innovation opportunity for the transportation industry, especially for electric vehicles and aircraft.