Apple Car to Support Monocells

Let me be the first to say pretty sure this ain't gonna happen but the Apple car hasn't been mentioned in a while so here goes. According the Japanese site Spyder7 (https://spyder7.com/article/2022/08/03/16409.html) Apple will introduce a new type of battery technology that doesn't require pouches or modules (maybe they mean prism cells) to hold the battery's materials. It'll be a smaller container that can store more active materials. According to the site they are also considering using LiFePO4.

Currently they are still looking to have somebody make the car for them but Hyundai and Nissan have both backed out. Last rumor is Toyota but nobody has said anything. They apparently have hired the chassis and vehicle dynamic R&D chief from Lamborghini and may have a car around late 2024, early 2025.

A lot of rumors on top of rumors, so I didn't post this in the Prius, Hybrid, EV and Alt-Fuel News forum cause until something is solid it ain't news. Wonder how many M2 chips will be in this car?

 

For further discussion see: https://www.tesmanian.com/blogs/tesmanian-blog/elon-musk-talks-about-rumor-apple-ev-s-battery-monocell-acquisition-deal-back-in-the-days-with-tim-cook

 

Well monocells aren't exactly new except that they would be used for Lithium based batteries instead of a design concept for VRLA (valve regulated lead-acid) batteries. Here's a cutaway of that type of battery.

To keep confusion to minimum I'll highlight what might be used in a Lithium based battery.
3 - positive and negative electrodes (anodes and cathodes)
4 - separator
5 - container material typically polypropylene
6 - terminals
(probably not used in Apple's Lithium monocell are 1 - pressure valve and 2 - lead grid. I'd be willing to bet the lead grid is replaced with cooling grids)

So unlike a 4870 cell where each layer is connected to a single anode and a single cathode, each layer is connected to their own anode and cathode. Instead of a single 3.7V cell, they can make any type of voltage and/or amperage cell they want. And of course the "monocell" can and will be quite a bit bigger than a 4870. Their interest in LFP may be because it is inherently more thermally stable. BTW this type of VRLA was never mass produced. This would be a bear to mass produce but maybe they found a better way. I'll ask @bwilson4web for his opinion.

edited to also indicate Apple's monocell may not be cylindrical as illustrated but is illustrated to conceptualize a like idea better.
pros: shorter contact areas to generate less heat, mega space saving, integration of cooling material better, variability of battery voltage and amperage.
cons: each sheet of cathode or anode would have to have almost no imperfections to prevent hot spots, don't know how they'd store or handle the electrolyte (and resultant gases) migration, each cathode and anode sheet would have to be the perfect combination of thin but not too thin to prevent breakage.

They could store excess electrolyte in the separator like they do in Toyota's bipolar battery cell but not sure how.