Periodic Reporting for period 1 - Electrofloat (Electrode assembly from floating nanowires for sustainable next generation batteries)
Période du rapport: 2023-04-01 au 2024-09-30
It is estimated that Europe needs an installed capacity for lithium-ion battery production of 300 GWh/year by 2030. By then, the battery market for electric vehicles alone will be worth $116 billion annually. Amongst many technical challenges in this transition is to develop cost-effective and environmentally sustainable processes methods to manufacture high silicon (Si) content anodes for the next generation LIBs (3b and 4a). Si is more abundant than graphite and can enable higher power batteries with thinner electrodes as well as extending the range of EVs by increasing energy density of the next generation of LIB cells by over 50%. ELECTROFLOAT proposes a new method to produce high capacity lithium ion battery anodes made of nanostructured silicon fabrics with up to 100 w.t% Si content, which eliminates all solvents, polymers and mixing steps from anode manufacture. This project comprises a set of selected R&D activities in key areas to reach TRL7 and start pilot-plant scale up, focused on a) de-risking the manufacturing process, b) application of strategies to mitigate capacity fading and increase electrochemical performance under application operational conditions c) designing scale-up roadmap to 1GWh/a and carrying out a techno-economic analysis to determine projected manufacturing costs and establish an adequate validation-driven scale-up strategy.
Electrofloat was instrumental to advance the industrialisation and commercialisation of the initial IP. The IP portfolio related to the project has led to creation of a spinoff company (Floatech). The company has an established and registered product (SiCoil) supplied to customers in three continents. It has a fully operational pilot plant and 8 permanent staff, funded through its seed round led by VCs. Given strong interest from clients and need for rapid scale up to meet the demands the next generation batteries for EVs, Floatech is accelerating the integration of its anode in pre-commercial cells and increasing personnel for manufacture and ramp-up. It expects to close its series A round shortly.
The specific objectives of Electrofloat were largely completed.
One of the streams was to achieve synthesis with high selectivity and size control This objective has been broadly achieved: synthesis control will be reported in an upcoming publication. Furthermore, in the project the team was able to devise a strategy for catalyst control to increase production by a factor of X10 through a new, proprietary catalyst delivery method.
A second stream was the demonstration of improved electrochemical properties, particularly high capacity and high capacity retention, which was also achieved.
A third stream revolved around the fabrication of cell prototypes. Indeed, during the project large area pouch cells were manufactured using semi-industrial cell assembly methods. This demonstration of cell manufacture at prototype level has been very beneficial to engage with cell producer clients to start co-development activities.
The fourth stream dealt with techno-economic analysis, including a 5 year profit and loss analysis. This was successfully achieved at the start of the project, providing insights to secure the seed round of Floatech. Based on such analysis, the company has now a detailed financial analysis and business plan for scale-up to the level of commercialisation for EV batteries in coming years.
The specific objectives of Electrofloat were largely completed.
One of the streams was to achieve synthesis with high selectivity and size control This objective has been broadly achieved: synthesis control will be reported in an upcoming publication. Furthermore, in the project the team was able to devise a strategy for catalyst control to increase production by a factor of X10 through a new, proprietary catalyst delivery method.
A second stream was the demonstration of improved electrochemical properties, particularly high capacity and high capacity retention, which was also achieved.
A third stream revolved around the fabrication of cell prototypes. Indeed, during the project large area pouch cells were manufactured using semi-industrial cell assembly methods. This demonstration of cell manufacture at prototype level has been very beneficial to engage with cell producer clients to start co-development activities.
The fourth stream dealt with techno-economic analysis, including a 5 year profit and loss analysis. This was successfully achieved at the start of the project, providing insights to secure the seed round of Floatech. Based on such analysis, the company has now a detailed financial analysis and business plan for scale-up to the level of commercialisation for EV batteries in coming years.
The original scope of Electrofloat was expanded to include electrochemical cells not only with liquid electrolyte, but also with solid state electrolyte. This was in response to strong interest in Si anodes for solid state batteries from cell producers approaching Floatech and scientists in the field. The project results were presented to stakeholders in prestigious events in the field (Battery Show Stuttgart, Solid State Battery Bunsen Meeting, Frankfurt) and disseminated in scientific publications:
Elena Sánchez Ahijón, Afshin Pendashteh and Juan J. Vilatela - Paper-like 100% Si Nanowires Electrodes Integrated with Argyrodite Li6PS5Cl Solid Electrolyte. batteries & supercaps , 2024. DOI: 10.1002/batt.202400292
Afshin Pendashteh, Rafael Tomey and Juan J. Vilatela - Nanotextile 100% Si anodes for thenext generation energy-dense Li-ion batteries. advanced energy materials , 2304018, 2024. DOI: 10.1002/aenm.202304018
Elena Sánchez Ahijón, Afshin Pendashteh and Juan J. Vilatela - Paper-like 100% Si Nanowires Electrodes Integrated with Argyrodite Li6PS5Cl Solid Electrolyte. batteries & supercaps , 2024. DOI: 10.1002/batt.202400292
Afshin Pendashteh, Rafael Tomey and Juan J. Vilatela - Nanotextile 100% Si anodes for thenext generation energy-dense Li-ion batteries. advanced energy materials , 2304018, 2024. DOI: 10.1002/aenm.202304018