The world's largest electric vehicle battery maker has developed what it calls the "world's first" hybrid battery capable of providing a 248-mile "pure electric" range.
The Freevoy Super Hybrid Battery is Contemporary Amperex Technology's answer to common barbs potential EV buyers have with EV tech, including range anxiety and slow charging times, according to a news release from the Chinese company, commonly referred to as CATL.
Freevoy is intended to work in tandem with combustion engines as part of extended-range electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, or EREVs and PHEVs, respectively, per the company.
CleanTechnica and Bloomberg have reported that EREVs are quickly gaining popularity in China, partly because of a small gas engine that can charge the battery like an onboard generator. PHEVs can be driven with either electric or gas power, as Top Gear described. Both types can typically be plugged in to charge.
They are answers that address the concerns noted by CATL, but they don't completely nix the production of harmful, heat-trapping air pollution. The World Health Organization has reported that planet-warming fumes are a menace to nearly all of the globe's population and are associated with a variety of human health risks.
For its part, CATL sees Freevoy as an "immediate solution" that is "heralding a new era" of cleaner travel, per the news release.
"Compared to previous PHEV batteries, the new upgraded system increases energy performance by 20%," Interesting Engineering's Baba Tamim wrote in an article about the tech.
CATL touts a nearly 174-mile range on a 10-minute charge as one of the perks. Improved inner workings with key battery parts and chemistry leverage both sodium-ion and lithium-ion science to increase operational temperature range. It can run when temperatures are well below freezing, another metric on an EV buyer's checklist, per the experts.
"The Freevoy combines sodium-ion batteries and lithium-ion batteries in a defined ratio and arrangement … to enhance low-temperature range by 5%," according to the CATL news release.
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Sodium-based packs are gaining ground in part because they can be cheaper to make, as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Review noted. Lithium-ion batteries are already reliable units powering many EVs for brands around the world.
While the hybrid development is exciting news, entirely electric tech is making strong advances, as well. The Ford Mustang Mach-E recently set a world record, traveling 569.64 miles on a single charge. There's even a battery in development that could provide an astounding 1,000 miles of range after a power-up. Tesla's Superchargers can reportedly provide 200 miles of range in 15 minutes of charging. What's more, batteries that can charge in as little as five minutes are in development.
When replacing a gas-guzzler, EVs can prevent thousands of pounds of air pollution a year. Hybrid options cut the fumes significantly, as well. But the impact lessens as reliance on combustion engines increases, all per a U.S. government report.
Valuable tax breaks of up to $7,500 remain available to help you upgrade to a cleaner ride. By switching, you could also save up to $1,500 or more a year on gas and maintenance costs.
At CATL, experts expect 30 hybrid models to have Freevoys in them by sometime next year, per the news release.
It's part of the company's effort to accelerate "the shift toward comprehensive electrification," according to the battery maker's leaders.
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