Charging electric vehicles 5x faster in subfreezing temps

Heating vs new battery chemistry

• Several commenters argue the article downplays the obvious engineering solution: heat the battery with pumps, resistive elements, or motor waste heat.
• Many current EVs already preheat packs before DC fast charging and use heat pumps or resistive heaters; for fast charging there is usually enough power to both heat and charge.
• Skeptics say the new chemistry must be compared against “battery + thermal management,” not “battery with no heating,” meaning the real benefit margin may be modest.
• Supporters counter that preheating is slow, consumes range, and is operationally awkward when you start a day needing to charge in the cold.

EV behavior in extreme cold

• The research highlights performance at roughly -10°C / 14°F; some commenters note that’s a typical winter day, not true extreme cold.
• There’s a spirited exchange about how gas and EVs behave at -30°C to -50°C: anecdotes that ICE engines still start (or need block heaters and extra under-hood heaters), versus EVs that can drive but won’t accept charge until packs warm.
• Lithium plating when charging below freezing is repeatedly cited; some cell data sheets allow tiny subzero charge currents, but commenters note this likely risks long-term damage without protective circuitry.

Battery management, preconditioning, and UX

• Most modern EVs are said to have thermal management; some small/older models remain passively cooled.
• Preconditioning via integrated navigation is common, but doesn’t work with CarPlay/Android Auto in many cars; some models only recently added manual or remote battery preheat.
• Users in cold climates complain about daily winter energy loss just to keep packs warm, reduced regen braking at low temps, and ski-trip scenarios where parked cars lose range and then charge slowly when cold.

Applications beyond cars

• The underlying claim is ~10-minute charging via a modest change to existing Li-ion manufacturing; no products yet.
• Commenters note potentially bigger gains for off-grid, low-power devices: remote solar nodes, power banks, small systems that must safely charge at or below 0°C.

Industry context and technical doubts

• BYD’s ultra-fast charging and megawatt-scale chargers are mentioned as current state-of-the-art, raising grid and infrastructure challenges.
• A few commenters question whether the work can really “beat” Arrhenius-governed ion mobility at low temperatures, suggesting internal heating is still fundamentally required.