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0 pointsaeonfox4mo ago0 comments

> IMHO, like the cobalt getting mined by children from artisanal-scale mines in Africa

Not really an issue for solar battery systems as they typically use the cheaper LFP chemistry that has a much higher cycle count. The gravimetric density is a bit less, but that only really matters for high-performance mobility.

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nandomrumber4mo ago

You responded to a comment about cobalt with vague references to cell chemistry, cycle count, and energy density.

What does any of that have to do with cobalt?

dgacmu4mo ago

The post you're replying to didn't explain it well, but: LFP batteries don't use cobalt (or nickel).

LFP production is starting to pass NMC (lithium + nickel manganese cobalt oxide). Slightly lower density but a lot of advantages in lack of easily catching on fire, longer lifetime -- and lack of cobalt. LFP (LiFePo4) is the battery chemistry of choice today for solar installations, where the longer lifetime and increased safety are a big win and the slightly lower density doesn't matter, unlike mobile applications.

aeonfoxOP4mo ago

I suppose I could have been clearer, but I figure it was an easy connection tom make from talking about chemistry to the question of whether cobalt is even relevant.

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