Tesla Dry Electrode Technology Minimizes Water Consumption at Giga Berlin

Photo: @gigafactory_4/Twitter

After planning the Grünheide factory, Tesla adjusted the maximum water consumption during peak hours to match the capacity of the local water supply. The construction of the battery factory has raised concerns that Giga Berlin will need to increase the amount of water consumed. It has now become known that Tesla will not need additional water, which was probably made possible thanks to the dry electrode technology used by the manufacturer in the production of 4680 tabless cells.

The water consumption of Giga Berlin is a popular topic, even though it already exhausted itself when Tesla was signed a supply contract with the local water association in 2020. The recently filed application for the construction of a battery factory has again made local residents and some organizations worried about water supply, however there is no reason for this.

According to information obtained by Tagesspiegel, the electric vehicle plant will use less water than environmental groups fear due to Tesla's revised plans. Although the Giga Berlin electric vehicle factory will soon be expanded to include the world's largest battery factory, water consumption by both factories should not increase. Tesla's completed renewed application in the current main approval process for Phase 1 of the Giga Berlin expansion still calls for maximum annual water consumption of 1.423 million cubic meters. This number is exactly what was announced for the factory for the production of electric vehicles.

Traditional battery factories have extremely high water consumption. However, Tesla has a secret weapon. The integration of the battery plant at Giga Berlin without increased water consumption is made possible by the company's earlier development, namely, dry electrode technology.

In 2012, Maxwell, acquired by Tesla, filed the patent 'Battery with the recyclable dry particle based electrode' and in 2013 it was published. The patent discloses a technology that no longer requires the addition of a liquid additive. According to this technology, a polymer must be added as a binder additive. This is a dry substance, which immediately solves a lot of problems. Now Tesla does not need expensive furnaces, air purification systems, and a long waiting time for drying, as well as a huge amount of water. In fact, the company just has dry materials that mix in just a few minutes. It is the use of such a method that should dramatically reduce water consumption, as well as production costs and the size of ​​the factory itself.

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Article edited by @SmokeyShorts, you can follow him on Twitter

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