Sumitomo Chemical is ramping up production capacity for its Pervio lithium-ion secondary battery separators. Production at the company’s Ohe Works in Niihama, Japan will be raised to approximately 1.3 times the current capacity by next spring. The company also plans to build a new plant for Pervio at its subsidiary in South Korea, to start commercial-scale production in 2017.

Pervio combines a heat-resistant layer composed of aramid fiber and ceramics with a polyolefin substrate. It is used in Panasonic’s cylindrical lithium-ion secondary batteries, which power Tesla’s Model S.

In 2013, Sumitomo settled a lawsuit with Polypore International’s Celgard unit over separator patent infringement. As part of the agreement, Sumitomo licensed Polypore’s intellectual property related to coating separators.

Source: Sumitomo Chemical via Green Car Congress