Climate change
Dr. Benjamin Schumm, Prof. Stefan Kaskel and Dr. Holger Althues (from left)
Electric mobility and the associated sustainable, low-cost production of lithium-ion batteries are crucial to the transformation of the energy sector. To compete with manufacturers based in Asia, German automotive firms and battery cell producers are working on alternatives to the costly and energy-intensive process of coating electrodes.
Benjamin Schumm, Holger Althues and Stefan Kaskel from the Fraunhofer Institute for Material and Beam Technology IWS in Dresden have succeeded in developing an efficient and scalable alternative to conventional electrode coating. Their DRYtraec method reduces energy demand, thereby also lowering the costs of producing battery electrodes. This may help boost the competitiveness of battery production in Germany.
DRYtraec as innovative solution
DRYtraec technology, which is protected by basic patents, involves creating an electrode coating directly from a dry mixture consisting of active material, conductive carbon and binders. Unlike in the conventional method, no solvents are used in the process. This eliminates the energy-intensive drying step, and coating systems can be designed to be about 50 percent more compact. The innovative method is an outstanding step forward in sustainable production of present-day and future batteries and has already attracted great interest from businesses along the battery value chain.
Factors highlighted by the jury include the “high potential for independent battery production in Germany and Europe.”
Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft