Autoflight and CATL’s New Relationship

Dean Sigler Announcements, Batteries, Biomimicry, Sky Taxis, Sustainable Aviation Leave a Comment

AutoFlight and battery developer CATL (Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., announced “an exclusive strategic investment and cooperation agreement, a relationship valued in the hundreds of millions of dollars.”  Uniting these two technological leaders, the agreement provides developmental cash to AutoFlight and a platform for CATL to expand their electric aviation market. A Trip Across the Yangtze An August 1 flight across the Yangtze River highlighted how the strengths of this new relationship can grow both companies.  Nanjing, an ancient capital of the Six Dynasties, is only one of 29 major cities on either side of the great river.  All face the same transportation difficulties.  The 5.5 kilometer straight-line distance between Nanjing UAV Base and Yuzui Wetland Park, for instance, “requires a 20 kilometer drive that takes 25 minutes. However, an eVTOL aircraft can cover this distance in just five minutes,”  cutting travel time by 80 percent,” according to AutoFlight.  Even worse, holiday travelers around popular tourist destinations can slow traffic by …

China’s Solid State, Long Life Batteries

Dean Sigler Announcements, Batteries, Sustainable Aviation Leave a Comment

China seems to be leading the way in battery development, with recent announcements of increased energy density solid-state batteries, and batteries that can last for close to a million miles of service.  The two companies are reporting batteries already in service or close to being released to the public. Tailan New Energy Doubles Down Reporting in Electrek, Scooter Doll reports Tailan New Energy has announced vehicle-grade all-solid-state lithium batteries with energy density “twice that of other cells in the segment.”  Only six years old, the firm has taken a leading role in the battery industry.  The Energy Viking reports further. Tailan has achieved a 120 Amp-hour solid-state battery cell using “ultra-thin and dense composite oxide solid electrolytes, high-capacity advanced positive and negative electrode materials, and an integrated molding process.”  Housing an energy density of 720 Watt-hours per kilogram, twice that of other batteries installed in passenger electric vehicles in China, these new cells could effectively double the mileage per charge. …

Dreaming of Big Electric Airplanes: CATL and COMAC

Dean Sigler Announcements, Batteries, Electric Powerplants, Hydrogen Fuel, Sustainable Aviation Leave a Comment

CATL and COMAC are dreaming of big electric airplanes.  The first company has made some recent battery breakthroughs, and the second has recently brought China’s biggest jet airliner to market. CATL. Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd., is a behemoth.  According to TheInformation.com, “The company spent $124 million to acquire a lithium mine in China’s Jiangxi province, an operation that would feed into a $2.1 billion battery factory it was building nearby. And in October, it spent $3.6 billion to buy 25-percent of a cobalt operation in the Democratic Republic of Congo. This year, CATL has spent $1 billion on a lithium brine operation in Bolivia, $885 million for lithium rights in China’s Xinjiang province and $920 million for lithium rights in the Chinese province of Sichuan.” This globe-girdling spate of acquisition indicates the seriousness of China’s move to dominate world battery markets.  With recent news of CATL’s 500 Watt-hour-per-kilogram cells and their possible use in large aircraft, the need to compete …