StoreDot can recharge an e-scooter in 5 minutes
The BP-funded Israeli battery developer StoreDot has apparently fully charged an electric scooter from Torrot in just five minutes. Ordinarily, the Spanish scooter maker Torrot specifies a charging time of four hours.
Last year BP invested $20 million in StoreDot. Now both companies are claiming that – for the first time – an electric scooter equipped with StoreDot’s battery technology was fully charged within five minutes but so far we are missing a video proof.
StoreDot wants to launch its batteries for electric scooters in 2021. In the second half of 2020, smartphone chargers will come to market that can also charge the battery in five minutes. However, the big goal remains the electric car. StoreDot is planning the next demonstration when the E-Scooter batteries go on sale: to supply an electric Mercedes with enough power for a range of 300 miles (480 km) within five minutes.
Although StoreDot batteries are still lithium-ion batteries, a number of component levels set the batteries apart. As Doron Myersdorf, CEO of StoreDot revealed: “…we’re not using graphite in the battery.” Instead, according to the company, materials such as tin, germanium, and silicon are used in combination with organic compounds. StoreDot’s batteries, also contain less lithium but more germanium and tin than other Li-ion batteries. The Israeli company also includes anti-degradation agents into the battery chemistry to address one of the biggest problems facing fast charging batteries: the rapid wear of batteries.
StoreDot is in a race against several companies that want to shorten the charging times for electric cars – start-ups and large corporations alike. For practical use in electric cars, however, more than a single demonstration is required. Points that have not yet been clarified concerning the StoreDot breakthrough are the number of (fast) charging cycles, the durability of the new cell chemistry and a competitive price. StoreDot has not yet offered video proof of their claim.
StoreDot’s investors include BP, Daimler, and Samsung. BP wants to reduce its dependence on the mineral oil business and is setting up its own fast charging network in Great Britain with the acquired company Chargemaster.
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