Solid-State Lithium-Sulfur Battery VoltaCore Breaks 800Wh/kg Energy Density: EV Range Exceeds 1,500 Kilometers for the First Time

Solid-State Lithium-Sulfur Battery VoltaCore Breaks 800Wh/kg Energy Density

On October 10, 2030, Chinese battery company CATL released the VoltaCore solid-state lithium-sulfur battery. The battery achieves an energy density of 800Wh/kg, more than three times that of current mainstream ternary lithium batteries (about 250Wh/kg). An electric vehicle prototype equipped with VoltaCore batteries achieved a single-charge range of 1,580 kilometers in testing.

Lithium-sulfur batteries have a theoretical energy density of up to 2,600Wh/kg, far exceeding lithium-ion batteries, but have been plagued by the "shuttle effect" — polysulfide migration between cathode and anode causing rapid battery degradation. VoltaCore physically blocks polysulfide migration through a solid-state electrolyte layer, improving cycle life from the previous approximately 200 cycles to over 800 cycles.

CATL Chief Scientist Wu Kai said: "VoltaCore is not a laboratory product. We have already produced the first batch of cells on a pilot line and plan to achieve mass production by the fourth quarter of 2031."

VoltaCore's initial target customers are electric aviation and long-range electric vehicles. CATL has signed cooperation agreements with XPeng and EHang Intelligence.

VoltaCore currently costs approximately twice that of traditional lithium batteries, but Wu Kai expects cost parity by 2033 with scaled production.