NEO Battery Materials Ltd (CVE:NBM) (OTCMKTS:NBMFF) (FRA:1BC) recently announced that its silicon (Si) nanocoating technology successfully achieved an ultra-fast charging/discharging capability in a half-cell coin test.
Following a new test conducted by the laboratory of Dr Jong Hyeok Park, who is also Neo's chief scientific advisor, the company said the “breakthrough results” showed the potency of NEO's nanocoating technology through “superior charging/discharging performance on small battery cells.”
Significantly, NEO's nanocoated silicon anode allows for “a safe full charge within 5 minutes,” which demonstrates the potential for scaling and implementation in larger cells such as those used in high power electric vehicle (EV) batteries, noted the company.
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In a statement, Dr Park said: "Our proprietary solution integrates silicon nanoparticles uniformly coated by a nanometer-thick elastomer - a highly elastic polymer - with superior affinity to liquid carbonate electrolytes, which substantially outperforms the rate-capability of conventional silicon anodes.”
“For a performance test at a 12 C-rate, which represents a several minute operation of the cells, we can realize 5 minute-level ultra-fast charging/discharging without major capacity loss or safety concerns," he added.
Neo’s test results show that their concept is viable for boosting the rate-capability of silicon beyond the current state of the art, which cannot be attained by only utilizing conventional silicon-carbon (Si-C) nanocomposites.
“NEO's silicon anode enables better wettability of the electrolyte to the surface of Si nanoparticles, which can bring about a larger contact surface area to increase the lithium-ion current or movement to the anode,” said Dr Park. “Our proprietary elastomer nanocoating layer with excellent affinity with polar solvents shows fast charging/discharging ability for high power electric vehicles."
Meanwhile, NEO Battery Materials CEO Spencer Huh said the company is “excited” about NEO's 5-minute charging capability through its unique silicon nanocoating technology using an ion-conductive elastomer layer.
“We are on the mission to remove the bottleneck of EVs effectively and efficiently through improving the cell chemistry and performance of lithium-ion batteries through silicon anodes," added Huh.
"We are currently well underway in developing a full-cell prototype. Our team of top South Korean battery experts will continue to refine our technology to deliver an innovative silicon anode material that is cost-effective, mass-producible, and commercially viable."
Contact the author Uttara Choudhury at uttara@proactiveinvestors.com
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