China Boosts EV Battery Inspection Efficiency: Ultra-Fast CT Cuts Scan Time from 15 Minutes to 5 Seconds

Since 2024, the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) has launched a two-year special initiative titled "Strengthening the Quality Chain of Power Batteries." To date, it has approved and issued multiple national standards, including "Methods for Analyzing Fire-Related Defects in Battery Electric Vehicles" and "Specifications for Assessing the Health and Safety Status of Traction Batteries in Battery Electric Vehicles." Additionally, SAMR has organized the development of the "Standard System for Enhancing Power Battery Safety and Quality," which covers six major areas: fundamental/general requirements, materials and components, manufacturing and testing, among others. This initiative has facilitated the creation of the industry’s first quality and safety knowledge graph for power batteries and a hazard scenario database for new energy vehicle fires. These resources have supported investigations into over 80 power battery fire incidents, defect analyses of 10 vehicle models, and prompted relevant enterprises to carry out recalls and corrective actions. Meanwhile, China’s first technical specification on this subject, "Technical Specifications for Defect Investigation and Recall Implementation of Power Batteries," has been officially released. In terms of testing equipment, an ultra-fast online CT scanner for power batteries—developed through independent innovation—has reduced the scanning time per cell from 15 minutes to just 5 seconds, improving efficiency by more than 100-fold. The system has already completed inspections of over 14,000 cells, with core technologies reaching internationally advanced levels. Concurrently developed automated cell performance testing equipment reduces labor requirements by 85% and achieves a test validity rate of 95%. Relevant companies have established the world’s first large-scale unmanned power battery testing laboratory, capable of testing 100,000 cells annually and compatible with the vast majority of mainstream products on the market. Furthermore, four additional standards related to production quality management are currently in the proposal and approval stages.