This cylindrical form factor might make sense for batteries that have thermal runaway potential, to keep the unit size small so that the whole battery doesn't go into thermal runaway, only one cell.<p>But for LFP or iron based batteries which don't have such issues, the blade design should be cheaper, more maintainable, more space and weight efficient etc. There's no glue so you can actually just switch individual blades. Cooling channels can be straight.
EEVblog video "New Tesla 4680 Battery Cell EXPLAINED" from 2020:<p>* <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbPKE62aM0U" rel="nofollow">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbPKE62aM0U</a>
As a Canadian who's currently driving a 9 year old Mazda 3, I'm waiting for the day it decides to call quits so I can move to an EV (9 isn't that old, so I'm hopeful at least another 2-3 years)<p>That said, I wish there was a site that simply told me now's the right time to buy an EV. With supply chain issues, long waits for a new car, government rebates, and the influx of new inventory/models, it's hard to keep up when's the right time to transition!
"Panasonic Corp (6752.T) said on Monday it will begin mass production of a new lithium-ion battery for Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) before the end of March 2024 at a plant in Japan."<p>Was this detail added by the article writer? Unless something has changed, Tesla cells are produced at the Tesla factories. These 4680 production lines are for Panasonic to sell to customers.<p>Actual press release: <a href="https://news.panasonic.com/global/press/data/2022/02/en220228-6/en220228-6-1.pdf" rel="nofollow">https://news.panasonic.com/global/press/data/2022/02/en22022...</a>
Article was written when they thought this was coming at the end of this month… actually 25 months away.<p>Did the share price spike? If so who made money?
Somewhat off-topic, but maybe someone knows.<p>There's one thing that worries me about EVs: local pollution.<p>So, ICE cars release CO2 + they release local pollutants (NO, CO, etc), particulate matter, that kind of thing.<p>EVs obviously don't directly release CO2 nor do they release those local pollutants.<p>However, EVs are on average much heavier (probably 200-400kgs heavier), which means that they probably need bigger tires and they wear them out faster. They probably also wear roads faster.<p>For local pollution, is the extra tire & road wear and tear equal or worse to the ICE tire & road wear and tear + exhaust gases?<p>Does anyone know any studies about this?