Silicon-Valley-based Ampcera announced a low-cost flexible solid electrolyte (SE) membrane technology for solid-state batteries (SSBs). Unlike conventional lithium ion batteries (LIBs) that include a flammable liquid or gel polymer electrolyte, SSBs use a safe SE and promise to double the driving range of electric vehicles when loaded with the same... Read more →

A team of Brown University researchers has used reduced graphene oxide (rGO) to enhance the toughness of an oxide-based solid-state lithium-ion conductor. In an open-access paper in the journal Matter, they report demonstrating materials with a greater than 2-fold enhancement in the average fracture toughness (KIC). To our knowledge, this... Read more →

The Volkswagen Group is increasing its stake in QuantumScape and making an additional investment of up to $200 million in the US battery specialist. (Earlier post.) The goal is to drive forward the joint development of solid-state battery technology. In the future, solid-state batteries are expected to significantly increase range... Read more →

Inorganic NASCION‐type Li conductors have great potential to bring high capacity solid‐state lithium batteries (SSLBs) to realization, due to properties such as high ionic conductivity, stability under ambient conditions, wide electrochemical stability window, and inexpensive production. However, despite the merits, the integration of NASCION-type electrolytes in SSLBs is still hampered... Read more →

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers have developed a thin-film, highly conductive solid-state electrolyte made of a polymer and ceramic-based composite for lithium metal batteries. Solid electrolytes are promising in enabling lithium metal to replace the conventional graphite anode to significantly increase the capacity and energy density of lithium-ion batteries. There... Read more →

Scientists at Kyoto University’s Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences (iCeMS) have developed a new coordination polymer glass membrane for hydrogen fuel cells that works just as well as its liquid counterparts with added strength and flexibility. A paper on the work is published in the journal Chemical Science. PEM hydrogen... Read more →

Researchers from the University of Western Ontario (UWO), the University of Toronto and Glabat Solid-State Battery Inc. have proposed a novel strategy to extend the electrochemical stability window (ESW) of PEO-based solid polymer electrolytes (SPEs) based on their new understanding of the ESW limiting factor. A paper on their work... Read more →

Researchers at Toyohashi University of Technology in Japan have developed an active sulfur material and carbon nanofiber (S-CNF) composite material for all-solid-state Li-sulfur batteries using a low-cost and straightforward liquid phase process. In a paper published in the journal ACS Applied Energy Materials, they report that in an all-solid-state Li–S... Read more →

Researchers in Europe, with colleagues from Samsung R&D Institute in Japan, have developed a highly stable Fe3O4/C composite for use as a conversion electrode in all-solid-state Li-ion batteries. The material shows shows high specific capacity values of 506 mAhg−1 after 350 cycles at a specific current of 250 mAg−1, with... Read more →

Researchers at Tokyo Metropolitan University have developed a new practical method to make a flexible composite Al-doped LLZO (Al-LLZO) sheet electrolyte (75 μm in thickness) for Li-metal batteries, which can be mass-produced at room temperature. This ceramic-based flexible sheet electrolyte, with an ionic conductivity of close to 1.0 × 10-4... Read more →

Researchers at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) have developed a superionic halogen-rich Li-argyrodite (HRLA) that works well as a promising solid electrolyte (Li5.5PS4.5Cl1.5) in all-solid-state batteries without a decreased intrinsic electrochemical window in various electrode configurations. This HRLA exhibits the highest Li-ion conductivity among Li-argyrodites (10.2 mS... Read more →

UK-based Ilika, a developer of solid-state battery technology, successfully completed a £15-million (US$19-million) equity placement to support its growth strategy. Ilika launched its cm-scale Stereax technology for industrial wireless sensors in 2016 and followed up with mm-scale micro-batteries for miniature medical devices in 2019. In response to demand from the... Read more →

In an open-access review paper published in Nature Nanotechnology, researchers at the University of California San Diego offer a research roadmap that includes four challenges that need to be addressed in order to advance all-solid-state batteries to commercialization. The article summarizes the team’s work to tackle these challenges over the... Read more →

Researchers from the Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology (SAIT) and the Samsung R&D Institute Japan (SRJ) have developed a new high-performance all-solid-state lithium metal battery that uses, for the first time, a silver-carbon (Ag-C) composite layer as the anode with no excess Li. The team found that incorporating an Ag-C... Read more →

Canadian battery material specialist Hydro-Québec is partnering with Mercedes-Benz as part of the automaker’s research and development activities on future EV technology. The Hydro-Québec Center of Excellence in Transportation Electrification and Energy Storage is a leading research and development institute for advanced battery materials, focusing on solid-state battery technologies. With... Read more →

Researchers at MIT and their colleagues are proposing a new design for electrodes that, based on the long-sought goal of using pure lithium metal as the anode, could lead to longer-lived batteries with higher energy densities. The new electrode concept comes from the laboratory of Ju Li, the Battelle Energy... Read more →

Toyota Motor Corporation and Panasonic Corporation have decided to establish Prime Planet Energy & Solutions, Inc., a joint venture specializing in advanced automotive batteries, including prismatic Li-ion, solid-state and next-generation automotive batteries other than the first two, including batteries based on new principles. This decision comes just over a year... Read more →

Hydro-Québec and The University of Texas at Austin signed an agreement for the transfer to Hydro-Québec of patents co-invented by Dr. John B. Goodenough, a professor at The University of Texas at Austin and the 2019 Nobel Laureate in chemistry and Dr. Maria Helena Braga, an associate professor at the... Read more →

OXIS Energy has successfully tested its Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) battery cell prototypes at 471Wh/kg and is confident of achieving 500Wh/kg in the next 12 months. Consistently shipping cells at 400Wh/kg to its clients in Europe, the US and Japan, OXIS is collaborating with major European chemical partners to develop an advanced... Read more →

ECS, in partnership with the Toyota Research Institute of North America, a division of Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc., is seeking proposals from young professors and scholars pursuing innovative electrochemical research in green energy technology. Proposals for the 2020-2021 ECS Toyota Young Investigator Fellowship for Projects in... Read more →

RoboSense (Suteng Innovation Technology Co., Ltd.) announced a partnership with China-based FAW and showcased the first batch of its solid-state Smart LiDAR Sensor RS-LiDAR-M1. FAW will include the RS-LiDAR-M1 as a core component in its proprietary next-generation autonomous driving system development, therefore accelerating the serial production of the first automotive-grade... Read more →

The South Dakota School of Mines & Technology is vying to establish an international center to develop solid-state batteries which will be safer, cheaper, smaller and more efficient than lithium ion batteries. SDSMT hosted hundreds of industry representatives, the National Science Foundation (NSF) and fellow academics on 12-13 September in... Read more →

Australia’s national science agency CSIRO, and Japanese specialist chemical manufacturer, Piotrek, are partnering to commercialize Australian-developed battery technologies globally within the next five years. The collaboration will enable the next generation of lithium battery technologies for portable electronic devices, drones and automotive vehicles, as well as address a critical safety... Read more →

Wildcat Discovery Technologies, a technology company that uses proprietary high throughput methods to develop new battery materials rapidly, has been selected by the US Department of Energy (DOE) as a recipient of a $1,223,833 grant under the DOE’s FY2019 Vehicle Technologies Research Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), for the discovery of... Read more →

Researchers at Georgia Tech have developed a promising new conversion-type cathode and electrolyte system that replaces expensive metals and traditional liquid electrolyte with lower cost transition metal fluorides and a solid polymer electrolyte. A paper on their work is published in the journal Nature Materials. Rechargeable lithium-ion battery (LIB) is... Read more →

Prieto Battery, a 3D Li-ion battery technology company (earlier post), announced the results of its first third-party validation testing from Energy Assurance, LLC. Specifically, Prieto had a group of fully assembled batteries containing their proprietary 3D anode tested against an array of UL (Underwriters Laboratories) and IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission)... Read more →

The electrocatalytic reduction of CO2 is often carried out in a liquid electrolyte such as KHCO3(aq), which allows for ion conduction between electrodes. However, as a result, liquid products that form are in a mixture with the dissolved salts, and require energy-intensive downstream separation. Now a team led by researchers... Read more →

TeraWatt Technology announced that its 4.5Ah prototype solid-state battery design achieved a record-breaking energy density of 432Wh/kg (1122Wh/L) in validation tests conducted by third parties, including TOYO System based in Japan. Branded as TERA3.0, this 4.5Ah next-generation design will be available for select early adopters in 2021 and full release... 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 →

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 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 →

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 →

Researchers from Carnegie Mellon University’s Mellon College of Science and College of Engineering have developed a semiliquid lithium metal-based anode (SLMA) that represents a new paradigm in battery design for solid electrolyte batteries. The interdisciplinary research team published their findings in the current issue of Joule. Solid electrolytes are considered... Read more →

Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Material and Beam Technology IWS in Dresden have developed a new battery cell production process that coats the electrodes of the energy storage cells with a dry film instead of liquid chemicals. This simplified process saves energy and eliminates toxic solvents. A paper on... Read more →

A Columbia Engineering team led by Yuan Yang, assistant professor of materials science and engineering, has developed a new method for safely prolonging battery life by inserting a nano-coating of boron nitride (BN) to stabilize solid electrolytes in lithium metal batteries. Their findings are outlined in a new study published... Read more →

Solid-state sodium-ion batteries are safer than conventional lithium-ion batteries, which pose a risk of fire and explosions, but their performance has been too weak to offset the safety advantages. Researchers at the University of Houston have now developed an organic cathode that improves both stability and energy density. The improved... Read more →

Ford Motor Company is teaming up with Solid Power (earlier post) to develop all solid-state batteries (ASSB) for next-generation electric vehicles. The announced partnership will focus on further developing ASSBs toward automotive requirements. Solid Power’s solid-state technology combines a cathode, metallic lithium anode, and a safe, inorganic solid electrolyte layer.... Read more →

The public transport company ESWE Verkehrsgesellschaft mbH from Wiesbaden in Germany’s Hesse region has ordered 56 Mercedes‑Benz eCitaro electric urban buses. With this commission, the city of Wiesbaden is switching a fifth of its bus fleet to electromobility within a short period of time. As a provider of comprehensive electromobility... Read more →

Innoviz Technologies, a provider of high-performance, solid-state lidar sensors and perception software, raised $132 million in Series C funding. The round is marked by the entrance of new major investors China Merchants Capital (SINO-BLR Industrial Investment Fund, L.P.), Shenzhen Capital Group and New Alliance Capital; and Israeli institutional investors Harel... Read more →

Scientists from Tohoku University and the High Energy Accelerator Research Organization have developed a new complex hydride lithium superionic conductor that could result in all-solid-state batteries with the highest energy density to date. An open-access paper on the work is published in Nature Communications. The researchers say the new material,... Read more →

Semi-solid battery developer 24M has developed a novel dual electrolyte system that makes it possible to manufacture Li-ion battery cells with compositionally distinct electrolytes—anolytes and catholytes—at scale, enabling next-generation chemistries capable of providing industry-leading energy density (more than 350Wh/kg), while improving cycle life, safety and cost. 24M CTO Naoki Ota... Read more →

NGK Spark Plug, a manufacturer with more than 80 years of experience in spark plugs and ceramics, and lunar exploration company ispace, inc., announced that NGK Spark Plug has agreed to participate as a corporate partner of the world’s first commercial lunar exploration program “HAKUTO – R”. NGK Spark Plug... Read more →

PolyPlus Battery Company a privately-held company focused on the development of the first rechargeable Li metal battery with a ionically conductive glass separator, has entered into the first stage of a joint development agreement with SK Innovation Co. Ltd., Korea’s first and largest energy and chemical company. SK selected PolyPlus... Read more →

In a review published in the journal Chem of the technical issues generated by the mating of Li-metal anodes and solid-state electrolytes, a team from Tsinghua University concludes that such solid-state lithium metal batteries (SSLMBs) have “brilliant prospects, though practically there are still many barriers to be overcome.” A solid-state... Read more →

Researchers from Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tohoku University and Nippon Institute of Technology at Tokyo Tech examined the mechanisms behind the resistance at the electrode-electrolyte interface of all-solid-state batteries and found that the crystallinity has a significant impact on interface resistance. Their paper is published in the journal ACS Applied... Read more →

Fisker Inc., an e-mobility and technology company developing electric vehicles and proprietary solid-state battery technologies, announced a strategic investment from Caterpillar Venture Capital Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Caterpillar Inc., the world’s leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and diesel-electric... Read more →

Carbon fibers have already beeen demonstrated as high-capacity Li-ion battery anodes, opening the way for their use as structural electrodes—i.e., simultaneously carrying mechanical load and storing electrical energy. Now, researchers led by Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, have linked the carbon fiber (CF) microstructure to the lithium insertion mechanism and... Read more →

Germany’s Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) has launched a new €16-million cluster—FestBatt—to foster basic research into solid-state batteries. Fourteen scientific institutions have joined FestBatt; the competence cluster is coordinated by the University of Gießen (JLU). Solid-state batteries are fireproof and might enable larger storage capacities and quicker charging processes... Read more →

Researchers in China report that commercialized liquid electrolyte can be easily converted into a novel quasi-solid gel polymer electrolyte (GPE) via a simple and efficient in situ gelation strategy. The newly developed GPE exhibits elevated protective effects on Li metal anodes and has universality for diversified cathodes including, but not... Read more →

Solid Power, a developer of all solid-state batteries (ASSB), closed $20 million in a Series A investment round. The Series A funding will allow the company to scale-up production via a multi-MWh roll-to-roll facility, which will be fully constructed and installed by the end of 2018 and fully operational in... Read more →