Dürr Systems AG and LiCAP Technologies, Inc., are working together to revolutionize the production of battery cells, traditionally reliant on wet coating, with the sustainable “Activated Dry Electrode®” technology. The partnership now includes the Cellforce Group GmbH, marking the next step in the development of dry electrode coating for battery-cell production.
Dürr had announced its partnership with US coating expert LiCAP Technologies last year, alongside the acquisition of the French mechanical-engineering company Ingecal. This move highlighted Dürr’s goal to offer dry electrode-coating solutions in addition to the established wet-coating process.
The expanded collaboration with Cellforce, a subsidiary of sports-car manufacturer Porsche, focuses on integrating LiCAP’s patented Activated Dry Electrode® technology into Cellforce’s battery-production line. Combined with Dürr’s expertise in electrode coating, this marks a significant step toward an innovative overall approach to industrial-scale dry electrode coating.
LiCAP’s Activated Dry Electrode® technology is pivotal, improving battery performance while minimizing environmental impact. By eliminating toxic solvents and energy-intensive drying ovens, it significantly reduces energy consumption, shortens process times, and CO2 emissions by roughly one ton per 10 kilowatt hours of electrode capacity produced.
Cellforce recently licensed LiCAP’s Activated Dry Electrode® technology, marking an important milestone in the potential scale-up this process. Dürr has already commissioned a gigawatt-scale proof-of-concept cathode line in Chassieu, France. “By collaborating with LiCAP, Dürr is broadening its dry-coating solutions to support customers like Cellforce in adopting this innovative dry electrode production process,” says Bernhard Bruhn, vp-Global Business LIB.