By Battery Power Online Staff
June 16, 2021 | NanoGraf has announced the highest energy density 18650 cylindrical lithium-ion cell in the world, achieving a 28% longer run time than traditional cell chemistries.
Aided by funding from the U.S. Department of Defense and others, NanoGraf’s team of scientists, technologists, and engineers unveiled an 800 watt-hour per liter (Wh/L) silicon-anode based cell.
“This is a breakthrough for the battery industry,” said NanoGraf President, Dr. Kurt (Chip) Breitenkamp in a press release announcing the cell. “Energy density has plateaued, only increasing eight percent or so over the last decade. We just achieved a 10 percent increase in a little under a year. This is over a decade’s worth of innovation in one technology.”
One of the biggest opportunities for more energy-dense batteries lies with electric vehicles, where “range anxiety” is a major impediment to mainstream adoption. NanoGraf’s new cell technology could immediately provide a boost to electric vehicles, such as the Tesla Model S, which would last approximately 28% longer on a single charge compared to similar vehicles on the road today.
In addition to commercial applications, the NanoGraf-enabled battery also dramatically improves the performance of soldier-carried military electronics and equipment. U.S. soldiers on patrol carry upwards of twenty pounds of lithium ion batteries, often the second heaviest category of equipment after body armor. NanoGraf’s batteries improve run time on U.S. soldiers’ equipment and can reduce their battery pack weights by over 15%.
The announcement follows a period of rapid growth for the company. Last year, the U.S. Department of Defense awarded NanoGraf a $1.65 million grant to develop longer-lasting lithium-ion batteries to power U.S. military equipment. In 2019, the U.S. Council for Automotive Research, a consortium of Ford, General Motors and the U.S. FCA, which makes Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, Ram and FIAT vehicles, provided the company with $7.5 million for electric vehicle battery research and development.
