CATL’s Latest LFP Battery Blows The Competition Out Of The Water

The third-gen Shenxing LFP battery promises ultra-fast charging speeds, with sub-4-minute 10-to-80% top-ups.

CATL Shenxing Gen3 LFP Battery

Photo by: CATL

Iulian Dnistran

By: Iulian Dnistran

Apr 21, at 10:28am ET

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China’s CATL unveiled its latest lithium iron phosphate battery today.
The third-generation Shenxing battery can be charged from 10% to nearly full in less than 7 minutes.
The LFP packs can also retain over 90% of their original capacity after 1,000 ultra-fast charging cycles, the company claims.

China’s Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL) just upped the ante when it comes to energy storage technology with its third-generation Shenxing battery.

The company, which holds the title for the largest battery maker in the world, promises ultra-fast charging speeds that blow the competition out of the water, as well as above-average capacity retention. I would add that the Chinese giant has managed to boost the performance of lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries so much that it made solid-state batteries—which are considered the gold standard but are still out of reach—more or less irrelevant.

The main talking points are quite impressive. CATL claims its Shenxing 3rd Gen Battery can be charged from 10% to 35% in 1 minute, from 10% to 80% in 3 minutes and 44 seconds, and from 10% to 90% in 6 minutes and 27 seconds. The company didn’t say what the ambient temperature was when these numbers were produced, but it did mention that owners will need just 9 minutes to charge from 20% from 98% when the thermometer shows -22°F (-30°C).

That’s a fair bit faster than BYD’s Blade 2.0 battery, which needs 9 minutes to go from 10% to 97% at balmy outside temperatures, and it also beats the Geely group’s Shield Gold Brick battery that can recharge from 10% to 97% in 8 minutes and 42 seconds.

All this being said, CATL did not disclose the nominal voltage or maximum power input of its new LFP battery, but the advertised C-rate is a 10C equivalent and a peak of 15C. With these numbers, it’s clear the EVs coming out of China in the next few months will hold their own against traditional gas-powered cars when it comes to fill-up duration.

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But charging speeds are not the only talking points. CATL claims the new LFP battery can retain over 90% of its original health after 1,000 ultra-fast charging cycles. It can also heat itself using something called pulse technology, which can bring the pack up to a comfortable temperature when hooked up to a DC charger faster than the coolant-based solutions that are used in traditional EVs. When it comes to cooling, CATL has implemented Cell Shoulder Cooling Technology, which is said to improve efficiency by 20%. Keeping it all in check is a sophisticated temperature monitoring system that can keep tabs on each cell in the pack.

Topping it all off is an industry-best internal resistance of just 0.25 milliohms when ultra-fast charging. The Chinese battery maker claims this is 50% lower than the industry average—the lower the internal resistance, the higher the current flow, leading to faster charging.

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