So what’s the situation with EVs and solid state batteries already?
Electrek spoke with Dr. Greg Hitz, founder and CTO at Beltsville, Maryland-based ION Storage Systems, about what solid state batteries are, why they’re considered the “unicorn” of battery technology, and why they have yet to hit the market, and how his company is working to move the needle.
Electrek: Could you explain what solid state batteries are, what they’re used for, and how they differ from lithium-ion batteries?
Greg Hitz: Solid state batteries replace the flammable liquid electrolyte in a traditional lithium-ion battery with a solid electrolyte that serves the same function. They’re generally accepted as the key to unlocking the safety and energy density required for advanced electric vehicles and electrified flight.
It’s important to note, though, that not all solid state batteries are created equal. The different materials and configurations that underlie solid state battery technologies matter for safety, performance, energy density, and manufacturability.
Electrek: Solid state batteries are often referred to as the “unicorn” of battery technology. Why is that?
Greg Hitz: It’s a great analogy – you’ve never seen a solid state battery just like you’ve never seen a unicorn. Solid state batteries have long had the potential to outperform the batteries you see in most EV’s today; longer range, shorter recharge times, they’re safer. But nobody has yet shown that solid state batteries can deliver on their performance promise without making major sacrifices during battery pack integration like heating or compression requirements and can be produced with scalable manufacturing techniques.
Electrek: Why haven’t solid state batteries taken off yet?
Greg Hitz: No solid state battery manufacturer has yet to offer a 100% solution. Looking across the industry, there are technologies that have incredible rate performance, great energy density, strong safety, scalable manufacturing, and simple pack integration, but no single product offers all of that without significantly compromising one or more of the other aspects.
This is where we think ION differs from other technologies. Our first market customer will get a battery manufactured in the US that offers 40% more energy than their current solution and meets their needs on rate performance, cycle life, and production costs, all while inherently safe.
After our first market release, our second-generation product will incorporate future developments that will hugely extend the reach of the technology: doubling energy density, increased rate performance, order of magnitude decreases in production cost, qualifying long cycle life, and all the other targets required for wider market release such as EV production.
Electrek: How could solid state batteries achieve scale?
Greg Hitz: Scaling is hard and scaling batteries is even harder.
First, you need to design your battery to use plentiful, inexpensive resources. Cobalt and nickel are expensive and hard to source. ION has developed a battery with a lithium-free anode that supports nickel and cobalt-free cathodes.
Second, and perhaps most importantly, you need to design a battery that’s suited for manufacturing. The biggest targets here are energy-per-area – because cost of production is generally a per-area basis and batteries are sold per-energy – and use of highly scaled existing processing techniques.
Third, you need to create a win-win for manufacturing partners in the ecosystem. Solid state battery manufacturing is a whole new industry and there’s no widely scaled product that exists without an industry behind it. Look at the number of component suppliers for electric vehicles or for lithium-ion batteries. Dozens of companies contribute to the production of each unit sold. That complete package doesn’t yet exist in solid state batteries.
Lastly, you have to be in production to improve your production. That’s why we’re rolling out to smaller markets before we scale to EV. The pain of early production focuses the innovation and makes our EV production stronger.
Electrek: Why have cobalt and nickel become a source of pain for battery makers, and what other obstacles are there?
Greg Hitz: The only game in town for high energy density batteries right now is a nickel- and cobalt-based chemistry. There are alternatives, though.
Auto OEMs are switching to plentiful but less energy dense lithium iron phosphate chemistries for their shorter-range vehicles. Advanced nickel- and cobalt-free cathodes – incompatible with lithium-ion – that offer higher energy density without supply chain constraints exist, and have been waiting patiently for a technology to enable them.
ION’s platform technology is uniquely enabling to these plentiful and greater energy density chemistries and has been demonstrated with these cathodes, including sulfur and high voltage spinel chemistries, to name a few.
Electrek: Where are we in sourcing minerals ethically and sustainably for solid state batteries?
Greg Hitz: Solid state batteries unlock completely new chemistries, but that opportunity has to be intentionally harnessed to move to ethical and sustainable supply chains. We’ve worked with suppliers to achieve North American mineral sourcing and are working with recyclers to plan for end-of-life.
Photo: ION Storage Systems
Dr. Greg Hitz led the development of the multilayer garnet structure and co-founded Ion Storage Systems. He brings his experience in Good Manufacturing Practice to the company’s research culture, leading to an efficient transition from lab research to manufacturing operations. Greg received his PhD in materials science & engineering and bachelor’s in chemical engineering from the University of Maryland.
UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.
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Environment
U.S. crude oil falls below $60 a barrel to lowest since 2021 on tariff-fueled recession fears
A view shows disused oil pump jacks at the Airankol oil field operated by Caspiy Neft in the Atyrau Region, Kazakhstan April 2, 2025.
Pavel Mikheyev | Reuters
U.S. oil prices dropped below $60 a barrel on Sunday on fears President Donald Trump’s global tariffs would push the U.S., and maybe the world, into a recession.
Futures tied to U.S. West Texas intermediate crude fell more than 3% to $59.74 on Sunday night. The move comes after back-to-back 6% declines last week. WTI is now at the lowest since April 2021.
Worries are mounting that tariffs could lead to higher prices for businesses, which could lead to a slowdown in economic activity that would ultimately hurt demand for oil.
Oil futures, 5 years
The tariffs, which are set to take effect this week, “would likely push the U.S. and possibly global economy into recession this year,” according to JPMorgan. The firm on Thursday raised its odds of a recession this year to 60% following the tariff rollout, up from 40%.
Fueled by incentives from the Illinois EPA and the state’s largest utility company, new EV registrations nearly quadrupled the 12% first-quarter increase in EV registrations nationally – and there are no signs the state is slowing down.
Despite the dramatic slowdown of Tesla’s US deliveries, sales of electric vehicles overall have perked up in recent months, with Illinois’ EV adoption rate well above the Q1 uptick nationally. Crain’s Chicago Business reports that the number of new EVs registered across the state totaled 9,821 January through March, compared with “just” 6,535 EVs registered in the state during the same period in 2024.
Those numbers represent more than 50% growth in EV registrations – far beyond the expected 12% first-quarter increase nationally being projected by Cox Automotive. (!)
What’s going on in Illinois?
While President Trump and Elmo were running for re-election, they campaigned on the threat promise of canceling the $7,500 federal tax credit for EVs. Along with California Governor Gavin Newsom, Illinois’ Governor JB Pritzker made countermoves – launching a $4,000 rebate for new electric cars and up to $1,500 for the purchase of a new electric motorcycle.
At the same time, the state’s largest utility, ComEd, launched a $90 million EV incentive program featuring a new Point of Purchase initiative to deliver instant discounts to qualifying business and public sector customers who make the switch to electric vehicles. That program has driven a surge in Class 3-6 medium duty commercial EVs, which are eligible fro $20-30,000 in utility rebates on top of federal tax credits and other incentives (Class 1-2 EVs are eligible for up to $7,500).
We covered the launch of those incentives when the program was announced at Chicago Drives Electric last year, but the message here is simple: incentives work.
SOURCES: Chicago Business, Ray Cunningham; featured image by the author.
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The electric construction equipment experts at XCMG just released a new, 25 ton electric crawler excavator ahead of bauma 2025 – and they have their eye on the global urban construction, mine operations, and logistical material handling markets.
Powered by a high-capacity 400 kWh lithium iron phosphate battery capable of delivering up to 8 hours of continuous operation, the XE215EV electric excavator promises uninterrupted operation at a lower cost of ownership and with even less downtime than its diesel counterparts.
XCMG is delivering on part of that reduced downtime promise with the lower maintenance and easier repair needs of electric equipment, and delivering on the rest of it with lickety-quick DC fast charging that can recharge the machine’s massive battery in 1.5-2 hours … but that’s not the slick bit. The XCMG XE125EV can be powered up without leaving the job site thanks to its BYD battery swap technology.
We first covered XCMG and its battery swap technology back in January, and covered similar battery-swap tech being developed by MOOG Construction offshoot ZQUIP, as well – but while XCMG’s battery tech has been in production for several years, it’s still not widely known about in the West (even within the industry).
XCMG showed off its latest electric equipment at the December 2024 bauma China, including an updated version of its of its 85-ton autonomous electric mining truck that features a fully cab-less design – meaning there isn’t even a place for an operator to sit, let alone operate. And that’s too bad, because what operator wouldn’t want to experience an electric truck putting down 1070 hp more than 16,000 lb-ft of torque!?
Easy in, easy out
The best part? All of the company’s heavy equipment assets – from excavators to terminal tractors to dump trucks and wheel loaders – all use the same 400 kWh BYD battery packs, Milwaukee tool style. That means an equipment fleet can utilize x number of vehicles with a fraction of the total battery capacity and material needs of other asset brands. That’s not just a smart use of limited materials, it’s a smarter use of energy.
You can check out all the XE215EV’s specs at this tear sheet, and get an in-person look at the Chinese company’s latest electric excavator this week in Munich, Germany.
SOURCE | IMAGES: XCMG.
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