fredag 24. februar 2017

European projects relevant for silicon anodes in Li-ion batteries

A list of current European projects working on silicon-based anodes for Li-ion batteries. Compiled 24.02.2017. The source of this information is presentations given at the “European workshop on nanotechnologies and advanced materials for batteries” organized by Emiri, Umicore and CEA in Brussels 23-24 Feb 2017.

MARS-EV: Materials for Ageing Resistant lithium ion energy Storage for the Electric Vehicle

Coordinator: CIDETEC, Spain
Budget: 9 million EUR
Period: 2015-2017

The project develops all aspects of the Li-ion battery, intending to bring today's commercial Li-ion batteries one step further. High capacity anodes with a capacity of 1000 mAh/g over 1000 cycles is the goal. Silicon-carbon composites with a capacity of 600 mAh/g over 300 cycles have been demonstrated by the project partner Tel Aviv University, using multi-walled carbon nanotubes composites with silicon nanoparticles. At Imperial College London they have also developed a method for 3D imaging of silicon based electrodes using electron microscopy.

SPICY: Silicon and polyanionic chemistries and architectures of Li-ion cell for high energy battery

Coordinator: CEA, France
Budget: 7 million EUR
Period: 2015-2018

The project develops all aspects of the Li-ion battery, intending to bring today's commercial Li-ion batteries one step further. Several partners develop silicon-based anode materials: Laser-baser silicon-carbon core-shell materials by laser pyrolysis, nanostructured silicon and silicon-carbon alloys by plasma reactors. Very little information is available on the web page.

SINTBAT: Silicon based materials and new processing technologies for improved lithium-ion batteries

Coordinator: Varta Microbattery
Budget: 10 million EUR
Period: 2016-2020

This project promises us batteries with lower cost and life of 20-25 years. With 10.000 cycles as a goal, we are looking at batteries for electricity grid integration. The project aims to better understand the behaviour of silicon based anode by using advanced characterization methods as small angle neutron scattering and small and wide angle x-ray scattering. 

BACCARA: Battery and superCapacitor ChARActerization and testing

No web page.

Coordinator: CEA, France
Budget: 4 million EUR
Period: 2013-2016

Inspired by the problems of moving from half cell testing to full cells (realistic): Materials that deliver up to 300 cycles at very high capacity in half cells, break down after only about 10 cycles in full cells with realistic cathodes. The project has developed advanced characterization tools (NMR, FIB-TOF-SIMS, TEM-EELS, XPS, in-operando FTIR/Raman), and specialized tools as special cells and containers to avoid contamination of samples. The conclusion of the project regarding the failure of silicon materials is published in Nano Letters.


Figure: The failure mechanism of silicon anode materials according to the BACCARA project.


SIRIUS: Silicon RIUS (?)

No web page.

Coordinator: Nanomakers, France
Budget: 1.6 million EUR
Period: 2017-2019

This project aims to develop the second generation of silicon-carbon core-shell nanoparticles produced by laser pyrolysis by the French company Nanomakers. The project is supported by the EU through the industry organization EIT Rawmaterials. The project aims to increase the stability of silicon and to adapt the other components of the Li-ion battery to the silicon-based anode. Little information is available from Nanomakers about the project, but a recent paper describes a pilot reactor based on a similar principle of laser pyrolysis.