By Allison Proffitt
March 18, 2024 | The more than 2,100 Florida Battery attendees had quite a task set before them at last week’s International Battery Seminar & Exhibit: winnowing down the new products on display and the new research being shared via posters for the Best of Show Awards. Winners and honorable mention awardees include entries from Semplastics/X-BATT, Amprius Technologies, Enovix Corporation, EVE Energy Company, and Westwater Resources.
Best of Show Poster Award
Out of 75 posters presented at the event, the community chose to honor Poster 49: “Polymer Derived Ceramic Composite Anodes for Lithium-Ion Batteries” presented by Kyle M., Semplastics/X-BATT for the Best of Show Poster Award.
Best of Show New Product Awards
From 17 new products on display at the event, the Florida Battery community was invited to identify exceptional innovation in new battery technologies, voting on the most impactful new products of the year. Selection was solely up to event attendees and was not based on level of sponsorship or exhibit participation.
The 2024 winner was Amprius Technologies for their SiMaxx 400Wh/kg battery. Amprius Technologies entered its newest ultra-high-power-high-energy lithium-ion SiMaxx battery. As they described the product: Leveraging the company’s advanced material system capability, the new cell achieves 400Wh/kg while capable of delivering a 10C continuous discharge rate, a significant development milestone for electric aviation. At 10C continuous discharge rate, the SiMaxx cell delivers 275Wh/kg. However, at a 6C continuous discharge rate the cell energy density increases to 335 Wh/kg while maintaining an internal operating temperature of under 50°C. In addition, the new SiMaxx ultra-high-power cell boasts an ultra-fast charging (UFC) capability, reaching 80 percent charge in six minutes or less, transforming mission-critical operations with swift turnaround times. The cell’s remarkable power output and rapid charging ability offer unparalleled advantages to the electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft (eVTOL) and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) sectors. Its combination of high energy and power density minimizes battery size and weight, resulting in extended range, less frequent charging, and decreased operational expenses. This provides unmatched propulsion power and energy to meet the rigorous demands during takeoff, cruise, and landing. Additionally, it extends flight range by up to 50% and increases payload capacity, broadening potential applications and enhancing cost efficiency.
Best of Show Honorable Mentions
In addition to the winning product, Battery Power Online also named three honorable mention awards, each representing significant support from the Florida Battery voting community. In alphabetical order, the three honorable mention awards go to:
Enovix Corporation for Enovix Industrial Cell EXHPR-73548
Enovix is a global, next-generation battery manufacturer. The company’s unique cell architecture enables the use of a 100% active silicon anode, which translates to high energy density and capacity without compromising safety. Its Industrial Cell, EXHPR-73548, is designed for IoT, military and industrial applications with a rugged cell architecture that provides a significant energy density advantage compared to other cells on the market today. Beginning in June 2023, Enovix has shipped its Industrial Cell for U.S. Army soldier’s central power source in their military vests — the Conformal Wearable Battery (CWB). Created by Inventus Power, the CWB powers vital communications equipment and other devices for U.S. Army soldiers. This cell has the potential to nearly double the energy density versus the current CWB cells, which would result in substantial operational advantages including much longer lasting battery packs to support longer missions. Another key advantage is the integration of Enovix BrakeFlow technology, a breakthrough safety system that provides an extra layer of protection inside the cell. If an internal short occurs in the battery, BrakeFlow will enable the battery to safely discharge slowly instead of a sudden catastrophic release of energy. Specs: – Capacity: 1.93 Ah (Min) – Average Voltage: 3.60 V – Energy: 6.95 Wh (Min) – Charge Conditions o Constant current (0.7C): 2.35 A to 4.35V o Constant Voltage: 4.35V – Taper current cut-off (0.04C): 77 mA – Discharge Conditions – Constant current (0.5C): 0.965 A to 2.7V
EVE Energy Co. for the Mr. Big LFP 628Ah Cell
Mr. Big is a 628Ah high energy density, long cycle life, super-sized LFP chemistry cell, which makes the energy storage systems (ESS) to be more convenient, safer, and economically efficient.
Westwater Resources for Natural Graphite – CSPG-10 and CSPG-18
Westwater is a U.S.-based supplier of natural graphite anode materials. Over the last four years, Westwater’s technical team worked with leading cellmakers to develop natural graphite that meets or exceeds the performance of today’s leading Chinese suppliers. Westwater successfully developed two Coated Spheroidized Purified Graphite (CSPG) materials with D50 particle sizes of 10 and 18 microns. Minimum material specifications for CSPG-18 include: tap density >1.0 g/cm^3, >360 mAh/g reversible capacity, <8% ICL, and >99.95% graphite purity. CSPG-10 offers similar properties with improved rate performance. Westwater’s developed its materials using production-scale equipment in up to one ton batches. As a result, the typical battery material scale up risks are minimized via installation and use of the same equipment and processes at the mass production level. Westwater’s graphite processing facility is in Kellyton, Alabama and two thirds complete. Thus far, the company has financed the plant construction project with no assistance from government grants or loans. True commercial acceptance of a battery material is only measured by a supply agreement and requires two things. First, a material must be produced on scale while ideally offering some performance improvement without negative trade-offs. Second, the material must offer a compelling economic advantage versus available alternatives. Westwater successfully addressed both challenges as evidenced by its recently announced production off-take agreement with SK On wherein volumes will reach 10,000 mt per year. Graphite isn’t a new material, but Westwater is proud to be a new U.S.-based supplier of it.
Congratulations to the Best of Show Winners and the Best of Show Honorable Mention awardees at the 2024 International Battery Seminar
