SBIR Phase II: Development of Renewable Nanoparticle Platform for Green Energy Production and Storage Applications

这个小型企业创新研究(SBIR)项目的更广泛影响/商业潜力将是降低锂离子电池的整体成本。材料成本的降低推动了电动汽车和存储系统等使用电池的技术的更多采用，同时增加了可再生能源的使用。正极材料是电池最大的成本贡献者，随着市场同比增长10%以上，生产商不得不花费数百万美元扩建工厂，以满足日益增长的需求。这个行业迫切需要技术解决方案，使阴极材料生产商能够在不投资或牺牲质量或性能的情况下，以成本效益的方式扩大目前的产能。目前的工业流程需要漫长的高温生产步骤，在整个生产过程中消耗大量能源。这一第二阶段项目的重点是开发“一锅法”生产工艺，以满足当前的市场优先事项，即降低生产成本、缩短生产时间、提高生产产量和使用可持续材料，使阴极生产商在满足增产需求的同时大幅提高利润率。更广泛地说，较低的电池成本将增加利用锂离子电池的技术的采用，并使更多地实施其他可再生能源，如风能和太阳能。这个SBIR第二阶段项目提议在第一阶段取得的有希望的可行性成果的基础上，开发一种突破性的、可持续的、一锅制锂离子电池正极材料的工艺。这一制造过程将利用阴极生产中的机会，满足其降低生产成本、提高生产能力和降低能源消耗的需求。第二阶段的项目将包括(I)通过半电池电池性能筛选来衡量制造工艺的优化，(Ii)证明NMC 622的产能翻了一番，并提供至少20%的成本节约，(Iii)在全电池测试中证明电池性能等于或高于商业基准，以及(Iv)设计和建造试点反应堆。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 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) project will be in lowering the overall cost of lithium-ion batteries. Material cost reduction drives greater adoption of technologies using batteries such as electric vehicles and storage systems while increasing the use of renewables. Cathode material is a battery's largest cost contributor, and with the market growing 10+% year-over-year, producers are having to spend millions of dollars in plant expansions to meet this increased demand. Technology solutions that allow cathode material producers to cost effectively expand current production capacity without investment or sacrificing quality or performance are immediately needed in this industry. Current industry processes require lengthy high-temperature production steps that consume large amounts of energy throughout the production process. This phase II project is focused on developing a "one-pot" manufacturing process that will address the current market priorities of lowering production costs, shortening manufacturing times, increasing production yield and using sustainable materials, allowing cathode producers to significantly increase profit margins while addressing demand for increased production. More broadly, lower battery costs will increase the adoption of technologies that utilize lithium-ion batteries and enable greater implementation of other renewable energy sources like wind and solar.This SBIR Phase II project proposes to build upon the promising feasibility results achieved in Phase I to develop a breakthrough, sustainable, "one-pot" process for the manufacture of cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries. This manufacturing process will capitalize on the opportunity within the cathode production to address its needs for lowering production costs, increasing production capacity, and reducing energy consumption. The Phase II project will involve (i) the optimization of the manufacturing process, as measured by half-cell battery performance screening, (ii) demonstrate doubling throughput and providing cost savings of at least 20% over current production processes for NMC 622, (iii) demonstrate battery performance that is equivalent to, or better than, that of a commercial benchmark in full cell testing, and (iv) design and construction of a pilot reactor.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.