I-Corps: Composite Materials Enabling Batteries with High Energy Density

I-Corps项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力在于确定了部署新型和改进的锂离子电池材料的最有效战略。我们的社会已经经历了对更好的电化学储能技术的迫切需求。这不仅有利于消费电子设备和电动汽车，还将有助于向可再生能源的过渡，在公共健康和减少环境危害方面带来巨大好处。更高能量密度的锂离子电池的成功商业化是实现这一愿景的关键和基本要求。不幸的是，石墨基电池负极虽然是应用最广泛的技术，但已经接近其理论极限。这项提议的核心技术克服了石墨的局限性，同时实现了与当前电池生产方案的直接集成。参与i-Corps计划将为这项新技术的商业化建立最有效的途径。这个i-Corps项目基于一种新材料，可以将商用锂离子电池的存储容量提高约30%。这种化合物是一种硅-石墨复合粉末，其存储容量(1800 mA g-1)是当前商业锂离子电池负极材料石墨(365 mg-1)的6倍，并采用适合大规模生产的创新专利制造方法生产。该复合材料可作为商用锂离子电池的添加剂，部分或全部替代石墨，提高电池的重量和体积能量密度性能。值得注意的是，该化合物与目前的锂离子电池工业生产工艺完全兼容，无需额外的资本投资，就可以经济高效地引入制造工艺。为了使这一概念能够进入市场，目前的努力集中在通过i-Corps计划的客户发现过程，目标是确定理想的第一个客户群。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is in the identification of the most effective strategy for the deployment of novel and improved materials for lithium-ion batteries. Our society is already experiencing the pressing need for better electrochemical energy storage technologies. These would be beneficial not only for consumer electronics devices and electric vehicles, but would also aid the transition towards renewable energy sources, bringing enormous benefits in terms of public health and reduced environmental hazards. The successful commercialization of more energy dense lithium-ion batteries represents a crucial and fundamental requirement for this vision to be realized. Unfortunately the graphite-based battery anode, while being the most widely utilized technology, is already approaching its theoretical limit. The technology at the center of this proposal overcomes the limitations of graphite while enabling a straightforward integration in the current battery production scheme. Participation in the I-Corps program will allow establishing the most effective pathway towards the commercialization of this new technology. This I-Corps project is based on a novel material that increase the storage capacity of commercial lithium-ion batteries by roughly 30%. The compound, a silicon-graphite composite powder, displays a storage capacity six times higher (1800 mA g-1) than graphite (365 mA g-1), the current anode material of choice in commercial lithium ion batteries, and is produced with an innovative proprietary fabrication method suitable for large-scale production. The composite can be used as an additive to commercial lithium-ion batteries to partially or completely substitute graphite and boost the battery performance in terms of both gravimetric and volumetric energy density. Notably, the compound it is fully compatible with the current lithium-ion battery industrial production processes, allowing for a cost-effective introduction into the manufacturing process without additional capital investments. To enable the breakthrough of this concept into the market, the current efforts are focused on the customer discovery process through the I-Corps program with the goal of identifying an ideal first customer segment.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.