Solid-state battery Mercedes-Benz EQS drives 1205km  

The News  

To preview its next-generation solid-state battery tech, Mercedes-Benz has fitted its current EQS limousine with an experimental power pack and driven it 1205km from Stuttgart (Germany) to Malmo (Sweden) on a single charge, with more than 137km of range remaining. 

The Key Details 

The Finer Details 

Beating an unofficial record set by the Mercedes Vision EQXX concept car by 3km, Mercedes-Benz chief technical officer Markus Schäfer revealed in an interview the prototype EQS would have been capable of covering up to 1400km if the team hadn’t have stopped. 

Widely labelled the ‘holy grail’ of battery technology, the latest solid-state battery is the work of a partnership with US battery-maker Factorial Energy and Mercedes-AMG F1’s High Performance Powertrain division in the UK. 

Full details of the new powerpack haven’t been confirmed, but Schäfer says despite real-world testing, the difficulties of pushing solid-state cells into production mean the batteries won’t arrive until 2030. 

“The solid-state battery is a true game-changer,” he said. 

“We’re showing it’s possible. We can handle it. It [solid-state batteries] works in a car, it drives perfectly, so we took a big step here but now we have to mature it to series production.” 

Unusual challenges involved with rolling out the tech include the cells’ tendency to swell in size and expand as they get hotter. 

The workaround engineers devised to tackle the rapid expansion was to employ pneumatic actuators that respond to the change in volume as the battery discharges and charges. 

Squeezing the pack into the same casing as the standard 108kWh battery (usable), Mercedes says the energy content of the solid-state power pack is ramped up by 25 per cent, even though the weight and physical size of the power pack remain identical. 

Boosting efficiency further a “passive airflow cooling system” has been developed that keeps the solid-state cell working at its optimum range of temperatures for peak performance. 

The Road Ahead 

There’s a reason why there’s so much excitement surrounding solid-state batteries. 

Without a liquid electrolyte to boil over during high-powered charging or discharging, the tech is more resistant to dreaded thermal runaway, fires and explosions. 

The construction of solid-state cells means they also remain stable following damage, but the biggest draw must be the higher energy density for enhanced range and their ability to withstand higher charges, with the EQS rumoured to be capable of a charge beyond 1000kW. 

At those speeds, owners will be able to top up their battery in the time it takes to brim a tank, while lower construction costs could see EVs undercut petrol, diesel and hybrid models. 

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