SBIR Phase I: A Drop-in Sustainable Cathode Replacement that can Allow Sub-$100/kWh Li-ion Battery Packs with Improved Safety and Performance

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The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) project addresses the high cost and poor safety of Lithium-ion batteries in new energy applications. Low-cost and safe batteries will improve economic viability for solar energy storage, which is critical to increasing renewables penetration to above 30% of total power generation. This project advances a battery material to provide lower cost, higher safety and improved cyclability compared to currently used materials. This can support new batteries in applications including electric vehicles, grid-tied and solar storage, and consumer power tools, among others.This SBIR project proposes a novel nanostructured LiMn2O4 cathode chemistry (ND-LMO) that offers ~30% lower $/kWh cost compared to incumbent nickel managanese cobalt oxides (NMC) materials. Furthermore, it will have iimproved performance parameters, such as cycle life, a safer heat generation profile, and a 10% greater amp-hour capacity between full state of charge and maximum depth of discharge. Many of these improvements stem from the “intercalation-pseudocapacitive” properties of finely nanostructured electrode materials. Technical challenges, such as inactive and deactivating surfaces, synthetic costs, and others, must be addressed for these systems to be commercially viable. The project’s proposed composition and methods used can be applied to other material systems.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.