Natrion takes orders for US-made active battery separator

US-based battery technology company Natrion has begun accepting pre-orders for its first-generation flagship separator, which is designed to boost energy density, reduce costs and offer manufacturers a source of US-made products. The Gen-1 active separator, which uses Natrion’s lithium solid ionic composite (LISIC) technology, mitigates common Li-ion battery cell degradation processes. It offers enhanced cell safety, including widened operating temperatures and benign failure modes to limit fire risks. Separators have typically been inactive cell components, but Natrion’s LISIC-based variant possesses intrinsic liquid-independent ion transport properties. Rather than simply keeping cells’ anodes and cathodes apart and hosting liquid electrolyte as standard inactive separators do, the Gen-1 active separator operates without liquid to mediate selective charge transport between anode and cathode and block parasitic chemical processes and degradation mechanisms. It supports the vailbility of next-generation chemistries like Li-metal and Li-sulfur at scale by overcoming engineering obstacles like dendrite propagation and metallic lithium instability. Left: Comparison of Li-ion pouch cells with Natrion Gen-1 active separator and legacy inactive separator. Under identical charge/discharge conditions, the cells with active separator are able to access 10-15% more of their theoretical capacity; Right: Comparison of NMC811/Li-metal pouch cells with active separator and legacy separator. Legacy separators are vulnerable to dendrite propagation as a failure mode whereas active separator repeatably displays immunity from such premature failure. Recent internal control testing of Natrion’s separator in multi-layer Li-metal pouch cells has yielded 450 Wh/kg specific energy performance. In Li-ion cells, the control testing also showed effective energy density increases of 10-15%. These increases in energy density are accomplished through boosted discharge capacity availability and diminished liquid electrolyte volume. The Gen-1 material is mechanically identical to legacy separators that have equivalent or better thinness, flexibility and tensile strength. This design enables universal, drop-in compatibility with all cell types, form factors and assembly processes such as jelly roll and Z-folding. The commercialization follows Natrion’s launch of production capabilities to manufacture the separator at scale, which were announced in fall 2024 and have since been ramped to gigascale volumes. ” In the past, only the cathode and anode could be manipulated to substantially influence cell performance,” said Natrion Chief Technology Officer Duke Shih. “Usually only a diminished part of lithium batteries’ full theoretical power capacity can be accessed at any given time. Our active separator makes more of a cell’s capacity accessible, offering a new method of augmenting performance capability with a simple drop-in component.” Source: Natrion

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