PyroGenesis Canada Inc (TSE:PYR) (NASDAQ:PYR) (FRA:8PY) and the Energie Materiaux Telecommunications Centre (ETM) of the Institut national de recherche scientifique (INRS) and the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) have set up a research project focused on the development of silicon-based materials as active anode materials for lithium-ion batteries.
According to a statement, PyroGenesis and partner HPQ Silicon Resources Inc (CVE:HPQ) will be responsible for the production of silicon materials from the PUREVAPTM Quartz Reduction Reactor (QRR) and the PUREVAPTM Nano Silicon Reactor (NSiR).
The INRS-EMT will be responsible for the characterization of the materials and the optimization of the electrode formulations at laboratory scale.
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Despite intensive research efforts and significant investments in silicon battery materials, HPQ said current manufacturing processes remain unscalable or even commercially unviable. This explains why even though silicon (Si) is theoretically a superior anode material for lithium-ion batteries than graphite, it is currently included in less than 5% of commercial battery anodes and its use is limited to a few advanced lithium-ion battery manufacturers.
The PUREVAPTM developed by PyroGenesis is a game-changer and solves the scalability and commercial viability issues of silicon (Si) for the lithium-ion battery market, HPQ said.
Advances made in research on the use of silicon (Si) in lithium-ion battery anodes indicate that by 2030, up to 30% of the active anode materials for lithium-ion batteries used in electric vehicles could be silicon. This increase, combined with the expected exponential growth in demand for electric vehicles, will create a very high demand for the battery-grade silicon (Si) that HPQ and PyroGenesis are developing, with an estimated market of over 200,000 MT per year by 2030.
"This research project, funded in large part by government grants, will provide us with independent validation of our silicon battery products, while providing us with us quick and comprehensive feedback on the potential of our materials. Since we will own the data we collect, it will be very useful when we present our products to a multitude of potential buyers," said Bernard Tourillon, CEO of HPQ Silicon.
"HPQ's Silicon R&D Consortium has the depth and flexibility to meet the challenges, as we strive to produce products for renewable energy storage participants and electric vehicle manufacturers, each of which is searching for cost-effective ways to increase the Silicon content of their batteries."
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