SOLID: scalable solid-state battery production

Researchers at Fraunhofer ISC have embarked on a collaborative effort to develop a low-cost method for mass production of solid-state batteries using sol-gel. Funded with 3.2 million euros, first results are due in a year with the project running until 2020.

SOLID stands for innovative solid state batteries based on sol-gel materials with lithium metal anode and implemented 3D structuring. The project is funded by the Federal Ministry for Education and Research BMBF with 3.2 million euros and will run until September 2020.

While the Fraunhofer Institute for Silicate Research (ISC) has taken the lead, the conrotium receives further input from the Fraunhofer R&D Center for Electromobility Bavaria based at the ISC. The centre is to produce the current collector layer, the electrolyte layer and the cathode layer using sol-gel. Says Andreas Wolf, project leader at the Fraunhofer ISC in Würzburg: “Our research will considerably advance the use of solid state batteries by enabling their low-cost, industry-scale production.”

However, SOLID’s schedule is ambitious as the researchers have one year from now to show their first fully functional single cell based on the new solid state battery concept. They must therefore manage to create the required layer thicknesses of sol-gel, which are complex to synthesize, produce and cure. The idea is to employ a coating method that will allow for the desired layer thicknesses but also yield high performance.

isc.fraunhofer.de (PI)