Still the same honest and steady face, still the same pair of alert and determined eyes, the low-key Zeng Yuqun "does not make a sound, and becomes a blockbuster." After being listed on the "2020 Hurun Report" with 120 billion yuan in August After ranking third on the Rich List, he took his "never catch fire" 811 battery to the podium at the 5th International Power Battery Application Summit on October 16. On the stage, he spoke confidently and resolutely: "The 811 ternary battery system we designed and developed can easily pass the thermal diffusion test. The time is not 5 minutes, but it will never catch fire."

"Never catch fire" 811 battery safety improvement

On November 6, NIO officially launched a 100kWh battery pack to the market, and this battery is equipped with CATL’s latest CTP technology, that is, the “never catch fire” battery cell. At that time, news about "the advent of Ningde era's fire-proof battery" swept across the country.

It is not yet known whether CATL’s newly launched “never catch fire” 811 battery will catch fire, but CATL may be “getting angry.” "Battery technology has developed rapidly in recent years, and solving safety issues such as futures has been the focus of everyone in the industry. Whether CATL's newly launched 'never catch fire' 811 battery is as claimed by the manufacturer still requires actual verification after mass production and launch. "However, it is true that the NCM811 battery, the star battery of CATL, has caught fire many times," automotive analyst Ren Wanfu told China Car Network.

According to relevant news, since May this year, GAC New Energy Aion?S has experienced several spontaneous combustion accidents in Guangdong, Hainan, Haikou and other places. It is well known that the power battery of GAC New Energy Aion?S Although the official did not point out the specific cause of the use of CATL NCM811 batteries, anecdotal analysis may be related to 811 batteries, which has increasingly aggravated the industry's concerns about the safety of 811 batteries.

811 battery is a ternary lithium battery with a ratio of nickel, cobalt and manganese in the battery cathode material of 8:1:1. In power batteries, the higher the nickel content, the greater the battery capacity. At the same time, because nickel is highly active, the higher the nickel content, the worse the thermal stability of the cathode material. When the battery encounters high temperature or external impact, thermal runaway will occur and "spontaneous combustion" will occur. "At present, most car companies generally use the 523 high-voltage system. The high nickel content of the 811 battery generally makes people think that the cruising range is long. However, the 811 battery is charged at 4.1V or 4.2V. If it is charged further, the entire material phase will collapse. , and the 523 battery system is generally charged to 4.35V. "Relevant people who have worked at CATL told CRRC.com about the limitations of the 811 battery.

The emergence of the "never catch fire" 811 battery may be able to solve the problem of "getting angry" in CATL. Regarding CATL’s “never catch fire” battery, the above-mentioned person in charge of the battery business who is familiar with the battery business said frankly to CRRC: “The development of ‘never catch fire’ batteries like CATL is normal in the battery industry. There is no definition of the level of fire, but it is definitely much safer than the currently commonly used lithium batteries. There is no doubt that this does mean a technological breakthrough for the industry. "

With domestic and foreign troubles, the international market is in urgent need of expansion

Whether it is the "2020 Rich List" or the "Never Fire" 811 battery, the low-key Zeng Yuqun has become the subject of heated discussion in the media. However, CATL, which successfully completed its IPO in just 24 days and had a market capitalization of over RMB 600 billion, is currently facing internal and external attacks from LG Science and BYD.

Early this year, BYD, the largest domestic competitor of CATL, announced the launch of its self-developed high-security "blade battery". However, due to the acupuncture test, a "war of words" broke out between BYD and CATL. BYD, which also owns ternary lithium batteries, claims that "ternary lithium batteries are not safe."

BYD insists on using lithium iron phosphate batteries, which have been limited by ternary lithium voltage due to their low energy density and poor endurance. Although the "blade battery" developed by BYD this time still uses lithium iron phosphate batteries, due to the rearrangement of the batteries, the number of cells is increased to the greatest extent, and the performance of the lithium iron phosphate battery is maximized, thereby increasing the mileage. .

"BYD does have strong reserves in battery technology. Blade batteries can better guarantee the safety of pure electric vehicles. BYD is still very competitive in this aspect." Automotive analyst Zhang Xiaoliang CRRC confirmed the competitiveness of BYD’s “Blade Battery”.

"If we are not number one in the world, we have no value in existence." Zeng Yu said confidently before, but now "internal and external troubles" is the situation that the Ningde era is facing. In the first eight months of this year, CATL lost to LG Chem. According to SNE? Research data, LG Chem ranks first in the world with 15.9GWh installed capacity and a market share of 24.6%. CATL’s installed capacity of 15.5GWh accounts for 24% of the market, ranking second in the world. It is reported that CATL’s battery sales in 2019 were 40.96GWh, ranking first in the world in terms of global market share for three consecutive years.

“The main market of CATL is domestic, and it must expand to the international market if it wants to further develop.” Automotive analyst Ren Wanfu told CRRC.com.

According to data, CATL’s overseas revenue in 2019 was 2 billion yuan, accounting for only 4.37% of total revenue.

This article comes from the author of Autohome Chejiahao and does not represent the views and positions of Autohome.