The US Department of Energy (DOE) is awarding $59 million to 43 projects for new and innovative advanced vehicle technologies research. Funded through the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, these projects include solid-state batteries (15 projects) and power-dense electric motors (5 projects); co-optimized engine and fuel technologies (3... Read more →

The world’s largest all-electric ferry, named E-ferry Ellen, made its first commercial trip on 15 August, connecting the ports of Søby and Fynshav, on the islands of Aerø and Als, in southern Denmark. Capable of carrying approximately 30 vehicles and 200 passengers, is powered by a 4.3MWh battery system provided... Read more →

The California Energy Commission awarded $3.75 million to 25 early-stage, innovative projects as part of a portfolio of research investments intended to help achieve the state’s climate and clean energy goals. Among the projects are nine battery-related efforts. The Energy Commission’s Electric Program Investment Charge program, which drives clean energy... Read more →

Solaris has claimed the lead spot in Europe in terms of contracts for electric buses in 2019. In the first months of 2019, Solaris secured three large orders for the supply of electric buses to Berlin (BVG); Milan (ATM); and Warsaw (MZA). A total of up to 470 vehicles will... Read more →

Silatronix has been awarded a $10.1-million contract from the US Navy Office of Naval Research (ONR). The work will focus on the use of Organosilicon (OS) electrolytes to improve the cycling stability of Li-ion cells using NMC622 and NMC811 cathode materials in combination with various state-of-the-art anode materials. This ONR... Read more →

Researchers at WMG, University of Warwick, have repurposed end-of-life electric vehicle batteries as small energy storage systems (ESS) for off-grid locations in developing countries or isolated communities. The repurposed units, each containing approximately 2kWh of energy capacity, will be able to power a small shop, a farm holding, or multiple... Read more →

Tier 1 Musashi invests in solid-state battery company KeraCel; long-term partnership Japan-based Tier 1 Musashi Seimitsu Industry Co., Ltd. has invested in KeraCel Inc., a Silicon-Valley-based venture developing solid-state batteries using 3D printing technologies. The long-term strategic partnership with KeraCel allows Musashi to have priority rights to produce and to... Read more →

Renesas Electronics Corporation announced its fourth-generation lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery management IC that offers unmatched lifetime accuracy. The ISL78714 provides accurate cell voltage and temperature monitoring, along with cell balancing and extensive system diagnostics to protect 14-cell Li-ion battery packs while maximizing driving time and range for hybrid and electric vehicles... Read more →

Daimler AG, with its wholly owned subsidiary Mercedes-Benz Energy GmbH, and Beijing Electric Vehicle Co., Ltd. (BJEV), a subsidiary of the BAIC Group, have entered into a development partnership to establish second-life energy storage systems in China in the future. Together, Mercedes-Benz Energy and Beijing Electric Vehicle plan to set... Read more →

A team at Dalhousie University led by Professor Jeff Dahn, with colleagues from Tesla Canada R&D and the University of Waterloo, has demonstrated stable cycling of an anode-less Li metal cell by using a dual-salt electrolyte (1 M lithium difluoro(oxalate)borate (LiDFOB) and 0.2 M lithium tetrafluoroborate (LiBF4) in a fluoroethylene... Read more →

Roskill has constructed a comprehensive copper industry reference dataset covering the period 2014-2018, built upon a production, trade and consumption platform of the eleven main markets for semi-manufactures in copper and copper alloys. This new original data has been used to verify historical time series statistics of apparent and reported... Read more →

With a new coating process, researchers of Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) have produced electrodes for lithium-ion batteries at record speed. At the same time, the new process improves the quality of electrodes and reduces production costs. Precise edges at new record speed: new process considerably increases production capacity of... Read more →

BMZ Holding GmbH, a European manufacturer of lithium-ion battery systems, will join forces with KION GROUP AG, a global provider of intralogistics solutions, to form a joint venture under the name of KION Battery Systems GmbH. This joint venture will manufacture lithium-ion batteries for industrial trucks in the EMEA region.... Read more →

Energy storage installations around the world will multiply exponentially, from a modest 9GW/17GWh deployed as of 2018 to 1,095GW/2,850GWh by 2040, according to the latest forecast from research company BloombergNEF (BNEF). The total demand for batteries from the stationary storage and electric transport sectors is forecast to be 4,584GWh combined... Read more →

Australia-based biotechnology company Circa Group, which produces its bio-based solvent Cyrene from waste cellulose, is participating in a project to develop the first UK industrial scale capability to reclaim and reuse the most valuable components of end-of-life electrical vehicle (EV) batteries. The R2LIB (Reclamation, Remanufacture of Lithium Ion Batteries) project... Read more →

The i-CoBat project—a collaboration between M&I Materials, WMG and Ricardo —aims to develop and to demonstrate a new form of EV battery cooling technology based on cell immersion cooling using dielectric fluid. This innovation promises improved power output and cell longevity, faster charging rates and lower costs, significantly addressing the... Read more →

The US Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) is awarding $43.6 million in Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II Release 2 grants to projects that demonstrate commercial feasibility for innovations during the second phase of their research. Phase II awards range from $975,000... Read more →

Stora Enso is investing €10 million to build a pilot facility for producing bio-based carbon materials based on lignin. Wood-based carbon can be utilized as a crucial component in batteries typically used in consumer electronics, the automotive industry and large-scale energy storage systems. The pilot plant will be located at... Read more →

The aluminum producer Hydro now supplies sustainable aluminum for the battery housing of the Audi e-tron EV. The material is processed and manufactured along the entire process chain in an environmentally friendly manner and under socially acceptable working conditions. This has been confirmed by the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI) with... Read more →

LG Chem will host the 2nd Global Innovation Contest (GIC) for leading universities and research institutions worldwide. The contest is open for entry until 30 September in 4 categories: Petrochemicals, Batteries, Advanced Materials, and Bio technologies. Being the first of its kind in Korean chemical industry, Global Innovation Contest invites... Read more →

Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology (Sweden) with colleagues at Gyeongsang National University (Korea) have used an ionic liquid (Py1,4TFSI) as an electrolyte additive to enable longer cycle-life of Li/S batteries. By tuning the concentration of the ionic liquid (IL), they demonstrated an enhanced stability of the SEI and lower... Read more →

BMW Group Plant Spartanburg in South Carolina has doubled its capacity for production of high-voltage batteries. The plant’s own battery facility now produces the new fourth-generation batteries. These are intended for the plug-in hybrid models of the new BMW X5 and the future BMW X3, also produced in Spartanburg. We... Read more →

VC funding in Battery Storage companies in 1H 2019 was up by 139% with $1.4 billion in 17 deals compared to the $543 million in 30 deals in 1H 2018, according a new report from Mercom Capital Group. The increase was spurred by Northvolt’s $1-billion funding round. The Top 5... Read more →

A research team led by Prof. Quan-Hong Yang at Tianjin University and Prof. Wei Lv at Tsinghua University has developed a wax-PEO coating on lithium metal surface by a simple dip coating method to realize an air-stable and waterproof lithium metal anode. Wax as a commonly-used inert sealing material is... Read more →

In May 2019, 73% of all nickel metal equivalent (NME) deployed in passenger electrified vehicle batteries globally went into vehicles sold in China, the US and Japan, collectively, according to Adamas Intelligence’s latest ‘EV Battery Nickel Monthly’ report. In total, the amount of NME deployed globally in May 2019 increased... Read more →

Volvo Group and Samsung SDI have entered into a strategic alliance to develop battery packs for Volvo Group’s electric trucks. Working together with Samsung SDI, Volvo Group aims to accelerate the speed of development and strengthen the long-term capabilities and assets within electromobility, to the benefit of customers in different... Read more →

Researchers at UCLouvain (Belgium), in collaboration with scientists from Marburg University, the Technical University of Münich, the Technical University of Graz, and Toyota have discovered a new solid-state fast ionic conductor—LiTi2(PS4)3 or LTPS—that exhibits a Li-ion diffusion coefficient (a direct measure of lithium mobility) about an order of magnitude higher... Read more →

Researchers in Hong Kong have used biodegradable organic methanesulfonic acid (MSA) to leach valuable metals from waste LiCoO2 powders for battery material regeneration. Under the optimal conditions, leaching efficiencies of lithium and cobalt are achieved at nearly ∼100% and ∼100%, respectively. A paper on their work appears in Journal of... Read more →

Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources, Amarjeet Sohi, announced a new $4.5-million Impact Canada challenge aimed at accelerating made-in-Canada battery innovation to better position the country in the highly competitive global market. The Charging the Future Challenge was announced during the 2019 Energy and Mines Ministers’ Conference (EMMC), held in Cranbrook,... Read more →

In May 2019, the Tesla Model 3 alone was responsible for 16% of all passenger EV battery capacity deployed globally versus 4% for the second-ranked BYD Yuan and 3% for the fifth-ranked Nissan Leaf, according to Adamas Intelligence’s latest “EV Battery Capacity Monthly” report. Collectively, the Tesla Model 3, Model... Read more →

China-based Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited (CATL) and Toyota Motor Corporation have entered into a comprehensive partnership agreement for the stable supply and further development of New Energy Vehicle (NEV) batteries. The two companies have also commenced discussions that cover a wide range of fields, including: supply of batteries, new... Read more →

In May 2019, 47% more lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) was deployed globally in batteries of passenger EVs than the same month the year prior, according to Adamas Intelligence’s latest subscription-based “EV Battery Lithium Monthly” report. This increase in LCE deployment was driven primarily by two factors, Adamas said. Global sales... Read more →

Researchers at MIT have devised a new pulsed laser deposition technique to make thinner lithium electrolytes using less heat, promising faster charging and potentially higher-voltage solid-state lithium ion batteries. The method enables future solid-state battery architectures with more room for cathode volumes by design, and reduces the processing temperature. The... Read more →

New battery company SVOLT Energy Technology Co. Ltd, whose precursor was the Battery Business Unit of Great Wall Motor Co. Ltd, introduced its cobalt-free lithium-ion battery cell (NMx) and four-element lithium-ion battery cell (NCMA). SVOLT product roadmap. In the product launch event, Yang Hongxin, General Manager of SVOLT, said that... Read more →

Researchers at George Washington University led by Prof. Stuart Licht (earlier post) report a process for the high-yield, low-energy synthesis of carbon nano-onions (CNOs) by electrolysis of CO2 in molten carbonate. A paper on their work is published in the journal Advanced Sustainable Systems. High yield electrolytic synthesis of carbon... Read more →

Pre-series production of the ID.3 EV has already begun at the Volkswagen plant in Zwickau. The core components for electric cars are developed and produced for the new electric vehicles at the Volkswagen Group Components plants: the electric drive comes from Kassel; the Salzgitter plant supplies its colleagues in Hessen... Read more →

To help electric vehicle batteries last longer, Bosch is developing new cloud services that supplement the individual vehicles’ battery-management systems. Bosch is connecting electric-vehicle batteries with the cloud. Its data-based services mean we can substantially improve batteries’ performance and extend their service life. —Dr. Markus Heyn, member of the board... Read more →

In May 2019, 57% more nickel metal equivalent (NME) was deployed globally in batteries of new passenger EVs than the same month the year prior, according to Adamas Intelligence’s latest “EV Battery Nickel Monthly” report. Over the same period, the amount of NME used in li-ion batteries (primarily in the... Read more →

In May 2019, NCM 811 (cathode with nickel, cobalt and manganese in a ratio of 8:1:1) battery cell deployment in passenger EV batteries (MWh deployed) was 113% higher than the total capacity deployed in April, according to Adamas Intelligence’s latest “EV Battery Capacity Monthly” report. This increase lifts the total... Read more →

In an open-access paper in the Journal of the Electrochemical Society, researchers from Imperial College London and the Faraday Institution propose a new metric—the Cell Cooling Coefficient (CCC)—to quantify the rate of heat rejection from Li-ion batteries. The CCC (units W.K−1) is constant for a given cell and thermal management... Read more →

A team of researchers from China and Germany have used azulene—a benzene-free and vinyl-free molecule—to polymerize with sulfur to create a cathode material for Li-S batteries. As described in an open-access paper in the RSC journal Chemical Communications,the polymer exhibits high sulfur content and offers longer lifetime stability compared to... Read more →

Improvements to a class of battery electrolyte first introduced in 2017—liquefied gas electrolytes—could pave the way to replacing the graphite anode with a lithium-metal anode. The research, published in the journal Joule, builds on innovations first reported in Science in 2017 by the same research group at the University of... Read more →

Germany-based AKASOL, a manufacturer of high-performance lithium-ion battery systems for commercial vehicles, plans to open a production facility in the metro Detroit area of Michigan. Opening dedicated operations in North America comes in response to specific demand for the firm’s high energy battery modules from major international manufacturers and will... Read more →

Voltaiq, a developer of advanced battery analytics solutions, has released, in partnership with Total Battery Consulting, an industry survey examining many of the challenges and opportunities battery manufacturers, suppliers and integrators currently face. The global battery industry is facing unprecedented growth and change. Over the next decade, as we continue... Read more →

Leclanché has commissioned Comau to develop an automated manufacturing line for lithium-ion battery modules for transport applications. Comau, a member of the FCA Group, is a worldwide leader in delivering advanced industrial automation products and systems. Its portfolio includes technology and systems for electric, hybrid and traditional vehicle manufacturing, industrial... Read more →

In April 2019, 6.7 GWh of battery capacity was deployed globally in newly-sold passenger BEVs, PHEVs and HEVs, an increase of 69% year-over-year, according to a model-by-model build-up using Adamas Intelligence’s ‘EV Battery Capacity and Battery Metals Tracker’. Among the NCM cathode family, NCM 622 saw a surge in deployment... Read more →

Kyocera, a long-time partner of an investor in 24M, plans to install capacity to validate the novel 24M SemiSolid manufacturing platform for Li-ion batteries. (Earlier post.) The facility, under construction in Osaka, Japan, will support pilot production of residential solar + storage systems in the Japanese market. The 24M SemiSolid... Read more →

Imec, a research and innovation hub in nanoelectronics, digital and energy technologies and partner in EnergyVille—a collaboration between the Flemish research partners KU Leuven, VITO, imec and UHasselt—has developed a solid-state Li-metal battery cell with an energy density of 400 Wh/liter at a charging speed of 0.5C (2 hours). Imec... Read more →

US Energy Secretary Rick Perry announced $89 million to support innovative, advanced manufacturing research and development projects (DE-FOA-0001980). This Department of Energy (DOE) Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) tackles key priorities such as domestic manufacturing for energy storage. US manufacturers have created almost 500,000 jobs since 2017 and more than 250,000... Read more →

Despite weak EV sales growth in April 2019 versus the same month the year prior (up just 19.6%), total battery capacity deployed in newly-sold EVs (in GWh) increased markedly over the same period, according to Adamas Intelligence’s “EV Battery Capacity Monthly”. In April 2019, a total of 6.7 GWh of... Read more →