The competition to create a solid-state battery that can compete with the current lithium-ion battery is heating up. Lithium-ion batteries are everywhere: in your phone, car, camera, and more. They have become leaders in energy storage since their debut in the 1990s. But they have one major drawback: safety. Lithium-ion batteries tend to catch fire, especially when damaged or high temperatures.
Solid state batteries replace the flammable liquid electrolytes in lithium-ion batteries with more stable solid electrolytes. They can also have more power, faster charging speeds and longer lifespan. Now, many startups are trying to get their first battery out of the lab, into the factory and hope to prove that solid-state batteries are commercially viable.
One of the companies is Sakuú, a startup based in , , California, which is taking on a bigger task: 3D printing these next-generation batteries.
Sakuú said that 3D printing technology allows it to accommodate more battery layers in the same space, and its battery capacity has been improved compared with traditionally manufactured batteries.
Theoretically, these batteries can take more custom shapes, which may change the way the battery is integrated with product design. But the company has not yet used its prototype to 3D print a complete battery.
