Researchers from the German research institute ZSW and the Dutch battery company E-magy have studied cell expansion in lithium-ion pouch cells with silicon-dominant anodes.

The research assessed volume expansion in cells with NMC cathodes and E-magy’s nano-porous silicon anodes through 100 cycles. “E-magy has developed a nano-porous silicon which absorbs the expansion in the nano structure itself,” says the company.

In an article published in the Journal of the Electrochemical Society, the researchers write: “Considering the cycling time required to reach the 80% capacity retention threshold, the cell expanded in total less than 1% of its original thickness.”

According to E-magy, this is the first time that a less than 1% battery cell expansion has been demonstrated in a silicon-dominant lithium-ion battery.

“With silicon-dominant anodes becoming a reality, we will see a whole slew of new product categories that have simply not been possible until now,” says E-magy CEO Casper Peeters.

Source: E-magy