The new challenges posed by the need of an electrified world are the engine that drives innovation in the battery field. The race for high-energy-density and high-power-density energy storage devices feeds the development of new materials for cell components; however, the solutions proposed at a low TRL level, though groundbreaking, are often difficult to be implemented in production lines for cell manufacturers.
At Novac, the mission to revolutionize the battery and supercapacitor sector is being carried out with a clear vision to develop innovative solutions that are easy to adopt, developing true drop-in replacements of currently marketed products. Novac technologies are engineered with the aim to be adaptable to current production lines with minimal changes for manufacturers in their processes.
Novac materials for solid-state electrolyte and current collector follow this concept (see abstract attachment 1).
Novac solid-state electrolyte is a low-viscosity polymerizable resin, composed of a lithium-conducting polymer backbone, crosslinkers, ceramic fillers and electrolytes. It is liquid when injected into the cell and becomes a solid-state electrolyte upon thermal polymerization under mild conditions, preserving the properties of active materials, separator, casing and contacts. Several versions are being developed for different cathode chemistries (mainly LFP and NMC), with the aim to guarantee compatibility with lithium metal anodes. Optimization of formulation is being carried out to guarantee compatibility with widely adopted separators and enhance conductivity, towards high-power batteries.
The Universal Current Collector (UCC) is a patent-pending composite material, that comprises a metal substrate coupled with a carbon-based non-woven conductive net. The coupling between these layers exploits the upsides of both the metal foil and the carbon net, giving to the electrode higher mechanical stability against delamination, possibility to manufacture thicker and denser electrodes, lower resistivity and tortuosity compared to standard products. It is available for cathodes and anodes, and validation is being conducted with selected partners both in the battery and in the supercapacitor fields.