- QinetiQ testing of SuperDielectrics’ water-based zinc cells showed up to 13 times longer high-power cycle life, 100°C discharge in 36 seconds, and zero thermal runaway.
- The company presents its solution to AI data centers as a “shock absorber” capable of handling peaks in power consumption in a safe and reliable manner.
- The first commercial deployment of SuperDielectrics’ Faraday 3 is planned for early 2027, as it competes with existing lithium-ion battery-based energy storage as an alternative that can be deployed inside the data center.
Cambridge-based advanced battery technology company SuperDielectrics recently released independent test results for its upcoming water-based zinc battery, which could help cement its de facto presence in most projects that harness renewable energy, the production of which is often inconsistent.
The next-generation battery delivers up to 13 times longer cycle life under high power cycling, zero thermal trail, and charge and discharge gains that eclipse those of lithium-ion batteries.
This makes it an excellent complement for critical infrastructure, as well as a new, fast-growing and extremely power-hungry sector with huge power peaks: AI data centers.
A solution that specifically addresses the AI power problem?
SuperDielectrics is touting its battery technology as the holy grail for AI data center problems, and for good reason: It’s where all infrastructure spending will be concentrated over the next decade, and the company definitely wants a piece of it.
SuperDielectrics’ core innovation is a unique, patented polymer that allows it to deliver results that eclipse those of similarly configured single-layer lithium-ion cells. If the battery leverages zinc in addition to the proprietary polymer, the abundantly available metal could mean batteries would be cheaper, impervious to geopolitical and supply chain vulnerabilities, and easier to scale.
Testing of the battery at room temperature has shown impressive results compared to lithium-ion based alternatives, with SuperDielectrics claiming:
– Up to 13 times longer life under high power cycling (10 minutes charge and discharge, 100% depth of discharge);
– 10 times better discharge performance (nominal capacity maintained > 85%, obtained in 36 seconds)
– 8 times better charging performance (nominal capacity maintained > 70%, obtained in 1 minute and 12 seconds)
“These results provide an independent comparative analysis of the technology at the heart of our batteries: a proprietary polymer separator that combines rapid ion transport with the safety benefits of an aqueous electrolyte system,” noted Shelley Brown, CTO of SuperDielectrics.
“The result is an energy storage solution specifically designed for fast-cycling, high-power applications, providing an alternative to lithium-ion systems that typically rely on significant oversizing and additional safety infrastructure to handle demanding power profiles.
There are other things that make the solution ideal: Unlike lithium-ion-based solutions, the battery can be safely deployed in data centers, whereas off-site deployments are currently required for lithium-ion-based solutions due to their fire risk potential.
AI data centers are known to be particularly power hungry and often require significantly higher peak power when performing certain computing tasks. Lithium-ion batteries aren’t ideal for this, because not only do frequent charging and discharging degrade them quite quickly, they don’t charge or discharge as quickly as SuperDielectrics’ zinc-based offering.
As a result, as SuperDielectrics’ CTO noted, data centers must overcompensate for this limitation by purchasing more capacity than necessary to enable smooth operations without pushing existing lithium-ion infrastructure too hard.
There is a trade-off, however: Zinc batteries generally sacrifice energy density to offer advantages over lithium, and SuperDielectrics’ silence on capacity doesn’t work in their favor here.
Even so, thanks to the near-violent power swings of AI computing requirements requiring a moderator, SuperDielectrics appears to have a winner on its hands, at least on paper, but it might have its limitations for data centers that require longer backup times. The question that comes to mind is whether a smoothing layer can turn into true storage, especially for rack-scale product deployment.
On the other side of the equation, SuperDielectrics isn’t the only one toying with a “safe” battery solution; Chinese researchers are focusing on a similar approach even as the automotive industry already uses sodium for electric vehicles, which is already racking up victories in extremely low temperature conditions.
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