Solid-state batteries are approaching a clear timeline for scaling up, initiating the second narrative for dry electrode processes.
At the beginning of the year, Elon Musk announced that Tesla had achieved scaled production of dry electrode batteries.
This marks the culmination of seven years of engineering efforts following the acquisition of Maxwell in 2019, finally yielding significant results from the technical seed planted back then.
This news has clearly presented the two long-standing industrial narratives of dry electrodes to the industry.
The first signal captured by the industry was the first narrative of dry electrodes: cost reduction and efficiency improvement for liquid lithium-ion batteries.
By eliminating high-energy-consuming steps such as coating, drying, and NMP recovery, the goal is directly focused on reducing costs, saving electricity, and compressing factory investment.
For a long time, discussions about dry technology in the industry centered on calculating the cost accounts for liquid batteries, viewing it as an optional optimization scheme for existing production line iterations. Tesla's implementation is the most iconic validation of this route.
Beyond this layer of narrative, another more rigid industrial demand affecting the landscape of next-generation batteries is emerging.
With the start of mass production efforts for solid-state batteries, dry electrodes are no longer just a cost-reduction tool for liquid batteries but have become an indispensable process foundation for the engineering of solid-state batteries.
Solid-State Batteries Approach a Clear Scaling Timeline
The sudden rise in popularity of dry electrodes is driven by the increasingly defined development pace of solid-state batteries, transforming dry technology from an optimization option into a necessity.
The "15th Five-Year Plan for the Development of the New Battery Industry," released at the end of September, set a long-term goal: preliminary large-scale application of all-solid-state batteries by 2030.
GGII predicts that all-solid-state battery models may appear around 2027, entering an acceleration phase in 2028.
According to policy expectations, the entire industry has officially entered the countdown for solid-state mass production.
Capital investment intuitively reflects the heat. According to incomplete statistics from GGII, there were over 40 publicly disclosed investment projects for domestic solid-state batteries and core materials in the first half of 2026, with a planned total investment exceeding CNY 50 billion.
Looking at the vehicle side, Chery released a procurement project for solid-state battery equipment in October; GAC's pilot line started production, aiming for small-batch vehicle installation by the end of 2026; BYD, SAIC, and Dongfeng are continuously advancing solid-state battery integration into vehicles.
Battery manufacturers' actions are equally dense. BYD's Pingshan sulfide all-solid-state pilot line went into operation; Gotion High-Tech's Jinshi all-solid-state pilot line was completed, with cell energy density breaking through 400Wh/kg; CATL and CALB have set the node for small-batch all-solid-state vehicle installation in 2027. Pilot lines from Penghui Energy, Farasis Energy, Qingtao (Kunshan) Energy, and Welion New Energy have also gradually come online.
Upstream materials are synchronously providing support. Tinci Materials' hundred-ton level lithium sulfide and solid electrolyte pilot line will enter trial production in Q3 2026; Lopal Tech launched dry electrode-specific lithium iron phosphate, achieving a compacted density of 2.69g/cm³ under 9 tons of pressure.
Despite the bustling activity, the industry shares a common anxiety: while laboratory cell performance is impressive, problems arise one after another once manufacturing is scaled up.
The root cause of this contradiction lies precisely in the fundamental limitations of traditional wet processes.
Digging deeper, highly active materials such as sulfide electrolytes and lithium metal anodes are extremely sensitive to solvents and moisture. The NMP system used in traditional wet processes easily triggers severe side reactions, directly destroying the interfacial stability of solid-state systems.
Following the old wet manufacturing path makes it difficult to complete the process scale-up for solid-state batteries. Thus, the rigid demand for dry electrodes in the solid-state industry has emerged—this is the core of the second narrative for dry technology.
Hymson's Answer: A Full-Process Equipment Solution for Solid-State Batteries
As the rigid demand for dry technology in solid-state batteries forms a consensus, several domestic equipment companies have entered the dry electrode track.
Currently, Xiandao Jidian, Shangshui Intelligent, Tsingyane Electronics, Putailai, Yinghe Technology, and Liyuanheng have all launched dry electrode-related equipment, with many companies completing sample machine deliveries and small-batch pilot orders.
However, the industry still faces common anxieties: single-machine test data looks excellent, but once connected into a full production line, cascading issues such as powder uniformity, film formation stability, and sealed environment control arise. System integration is far more difficult than single-machine R&D.
Hymson's layout in dry electrodes can serve as a sample for observing how domestic equipment solves this systemic challenge.
Unlike some companies focusing on single-equipment development, Hymson is simultaneously advancing two major solid-state technology routes: "oxide + lithium metal anode" and "sulfide + silicon-carbon anode." Its R&D work mainly revolves around three parts: core process hardware, dedicated production environments for high-activity materials, and a full-process equipment matrix.
Powder mixing and film composite are the first gates in dry electrode preparation. If the source is not handled well, all subsequent processes are impossible.
Hymson's high-speed mixer achieves a powder homogenization rate of ≥99%, addressing the persistent issue of powder fibrillation; its thinning and composite integrated machine controls the areal density COV to ≤0.4%, minimizing fluctuations between the transverse and longitudinal directions of the electrode sheet.
Facing the industry pain point where sulfides undergo side reactions upon contact with water and oxygen, Hymson does not pass debugging risks to customers. It has built its own ultra-low dew point laboratory at -60°C, paired with a fully sealed conveying system, conducting joint prototyping of materials, processes, and equipment internally for pre-validation, thereby avoiding failure risks of high-activity materials during mass production in advance.
Furthermore, Hymson's equipment capabilities are not limited to the electrode preparation stage but cover key processes such as all-solid-state electrode preparation, electrolyte membrane composite, bare cell assembly, isostatic pressing, and high-pressure formation and capacity grading. Relying on full-stack self-development, it reduces adaptation losses caused by stitching together equipment from different brands, creating an end-to-end closed loop.
Now, the commercialization progress of Hymson's two routes has shown obvious differentiation, corresponding to the different landing rhythms of the two routes in the solid-state industry.
Among them, the sulfide + silicon-carbon anode route has delivered pilot line equipment to multiple leading battery enterprises, working with customers to continuously refine the process;
The oxide + lithium metal anode route was the first to complete a commercial closed loop, with equipment entering batch delivery. Related equipment supported lithium-metal solid-state batteries in completing installation verification for low-altitude aircraft, taking the lead in commercial realization.
Hymson's dry solution was also showcased at the 2026 European Battery Show, supporting the preparation of thick electrodes ≥500μm and included in overseas end-to-end lithium battery manufacturing solutions.
At the same time, the quality control logic for solid-state batteries has changed.
Liquid lithium-ion batteries rely more on backend inspection to eliminate defective products, whereas many defects in solid-state batteries originate in frontend processes such as powder mixing and dry film formation. Once formed, these defects are difficult to repair subsequently.
In industry exchanges, Hymson mentioned that quality control needs to extend to the front end of production. AI detection should evolve from basic visual recognition to multimodal data analysis to identify hidden defects in the production process.
Next-generation battery manufacturing emphasizes "material-process-equipment-data" closed-loop synergy. There is no standardized equipment capable of adapting to all formulas; equipment manufacturers must iterate alongside material systems.
Conclusion
Standing at the node of 2026, Tesla has completed the phased validation of dry electrodes in the direction of liquid batteries, consolidating the first narrative of cost reduction for dry technology;
The domestic industrial chain is exploring the possibility of dry electrodes as the manufacturing base for next-generation batteries within the wave of solid-state batteries, expanding its second narrative.
Objectively speaking, dry electrodes are currently still in the pilot validation stage, and GWh-level large-scale mass production orders have not yet been released.
Sample machine delivery does not equal complete process run-through; pilot equipment shipment does not equal mass production capability. Battery enterprises, material manufacturers, and equipment companies are still in a continuous process of adjustment.
In the future, the focus of industry competition will no longer be paper parameters in brochures. It tests enterprises' system synergy, multi-route compatibility, and joint development strength in accompanying customers through production line ramp-ups.
As a domestic equipment manufacturer that completed dual-route realization relatively early, Hymson's practice also reflects the breakthrough path of domestic lithium battery equipment under the wave of next-generation batteries.
The other narrative of dry electrodes has not yet reached a conclusion.
But no matter how technical solutions evolve, the ultimate standard of judgment will always be stable running production lines.