Chemical Formula, Pricing for New Soryu Sub's Lithium-ion Batteries

Following Submarines Matters articles of October 5, 2018 and October 9, 2018 comes Anonymous comment of October 16, 2018. That comment, further translated, is:

New data has emerged on the price of Lithium-ion Batteries (LIBs) on the newly launched Soryu Mark 2 submarine 27SS, and also effecting future Soryus 28SS and 29SS. 

The total price of the 672 LIB modules fluctuates every year, but the average price is US$78 million  for 672 LIB modules. This is except for the first year [2016?] when there were additional costs? US$9.8million (for jigs, measurement equipment, etc) needed to start production. 

One reason the price of LIBs (and also traditional lead-acid batteries (LABs)) fluctuates each year is the changing cost of raw materials in batteries. For example in the 27SS's LIBs this includes changing costs of Lithium, Nickel and Cobalt.

A (rare submarine use only) LIB module is 4.5 times more expensive than a LAB module. Meanwhile a commercially available LIB may be four times more expensive than a LAB.

LIBs for 27SS, 28SS and 29SS are made of Lithium Nickel Cobalt Aluminium Oxide (see red words in Table below). Chemically these LIBs for Soryu submarine are LiNiCoAlO2 and their shorter title are "NCA". See NCA's chart of qualities by scrolling a quarter-way down this Battery university website.

The maker of NCA LIBs is GS Yuasa which constructed a new manufacturing plant for LIBs for Japanese submarines in 2016. That plant has made sufficient LIBs for the Japanese Navy's (JMSDF's) medium term needs. The plant will restart production of submarine LIBs once it makes a profitable return on investment. See GS Yuasa's Reporting At a Glance on Fiscal Year 2017, page 32 at http://www.gs-yuasa.com/en/ir/pdf/GS_Yuasa_Report_2018e_10.pdf where it states "We have established a framework and started mass production of lithium-ion batteries for submarines,"

[TABLE OF LITHIUM-ION BATTERIES FOR SUBMARINE BY GENERATION

Anonymous created the following table on March 28 2017 at Submarine Matters site https://gentleseas.blogspot.com/2017/03/south-korea-to-be-2nd-country-to.html

	Name	Composition or abbreviation	Energy density [kW/kg] (theoretical)	Note
First Generation LIB	Lithium Nickel Cobalt Aluminium Oxide	LiNiCoAlO2 or NCA	260	for Soryus 27SS & 28SS. NCAs built by Japan's GS Yuasa
	Lithium Cobalt Oxide	LiCoO2 or LCO	200 (1014)	Shinkai 6500
	Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide	LiNiMnCoO2 or NMC	200
	Lithium Manganese Oxide	LiMn2O4 or LMO	140 (410)	Proto-type by JMSDF
	Lithium Iron Phosphate	LiFePO4 or LFP	120 (575)	LFYP (China) is family of LFP
	Lithium titanate	Li4Ti5O12 or LTO	80	CEP- Japan
LAB	LAB		40
LSB	LSB		(ca.2500)
Second Generation LIB	Lithium Ion Silicate	Li2FeSiO4	(1584)	High Safety, low cycle performance
	Lithium Manganese Silicate	Li2MnSiO4	(1485)	High Safety, low cycle performance

Anonymous commented: 

Two routes of advanced LIBs development may be as follows:

Route 1  LABs --- First Gen LIBs --- Second Gen LIBs --- LSBs

OR

Route 2  LABs--- First Gen LIBs --- LSBs

Second Generation LIBs (Lithium Ion Silicate or Lithium Manganese Silicate) show excellent properties such as very high energy density and safety. Their main drawback may be low cycle performance (ie. they cannot be recharged as many hundred times as First Generations LIBs). Studies to overcome this issue are being conducted. Battery University remarks "Manufacturers take a conservative approach and specify the life of Li-ion in most consumer products as being between 300 and 500 discharge/charge cycles."]

Anonymous and Pete