What challenges does battery production face?

The rise in battery production faces challenges from manufacturing complexity and sensitivity, causing safety and reliability issues. This Perspective discusses the challenges and opportunities for high-quality battery production at scale.

Is battery quality a determinant of battery failure?

In summary, both senses of battery quality (defectiveness and conformance) are critical determinants of battery failure and thus the financial success of cell and EV production endeavors. We revisit battery quality in the “Managing battery quality in production” section.

What causes a battery to fail?

Beck et al. 80 reviewed the primary drivers of nonconformance in batteries and battery production. Lack of conformance to the design may not directly cause battery failure; for instance, a key quality indicator such as the distribution of cell energy may be larger than desired but still fall within an acceptable band.

What is an example of a battery quality issue?

Throughout this section, we use the example of electrode overhangs (subsequently referred to as simply “overhang”) as a canonical example of a battery quality issue. Insufficient overhang may cause lithium plating, which may cause an internal short and, in extreme cases, thermal runaway 52, 74, 75.

What causes battery performance degradation?

Generally, the root causes of performance degradation are electrochemical and chemical degradation modes (subsequently referred to as “electrochemical” for simplicity) and have been the focus of much of the literature on battery lifetime 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34.

How important is a battery inspection?

Inspection tests during production can generate massive quantities of data 115, 116. These data can serve as a continuously updated snapshot into battery quality if carefully organized and managed—and especially if combined with data from the manufacturing process.