The Faraday Institution, the UK’s independent national battery research institute, has announced up to £42 million ($58 million) in new government funding to four UK-based consortia to conduct research aimed at overcoming battery challenges.

The topics for the four projects were chosen in consultation with industry, to ensure that the research is producing solutions that meet the needs of business. Industrial partners will contribute a total of £4.6 million ($6.4 million) in in-kind support to the following four projects:

• Extending battery life – Led by the University of Cambridge, this project will examine how environmental and internal battery stresses damage EV batteries over time. Results will include the optimization of battery materials and cells to extend battery life, reduce battery costs, and enhance battery safety.
• Battery system modeling – Imperial College London will lead a consortium to develop new software tools to understand and predict battery performance, by connecting understanding of battery materials at the atomic level all the way up to an assembled battery pack.
• Recycling and reuse – A project led by the University of Birmingham will determine the ways in which spent lithium batteries can be recycled, with the aim of recycling 100% of the battery.
• Next-generation solid-state batteries – The University of Oxford will lead an effort to demonstrate the feasibility of a solid-state battery with performance superior to Li-ion in EV applications.

“Through our flagship Industrial Strategy and its Future of Mobility and Clean Growth Grand Challenges, we are committed to making Britain the ‘go-to’ destination for the development and deployment of this game-changing technology,” said UK Business Minister Richard Harrington. “Government investment, through the Faraday Institution, in the projects announced today will deliver valuable research that will help us seize the economic opportunities presented by battery technology and our transition to a low-carbon economy.”

Source: Faraday Institution via Green Car Congress