Diatoma: nano-structured high capacity anode for lithium-ion batteries

Large parts of the world are transitioning from fossil fuels like coal, oil and natural gas to renewable energy sources. The ability to store electric energy is crucial for this transition and is enabled by batteries. Lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries are today considered the most competitive solution. However, conventional Li-ion batteries have reached their major performance peak and are today a bottleneck in the energy transition process. At the same time battery production has a large environmental footprint. New battery components are required to improve battery quality further. A battery consists of four components: Anode, cathode, electrolyte and separator. Improvement in battery quality means improving one or several of these components. NTNU researchers have developed an anode technology, consisting of nano-structured silica and an alginate binder. The renewable silicastructures are natural nano technology, harvested along the Norwegian coastline. This environmentally friendly composite material enables a 40% higher battery capacity compared to commercially available Li-ion batteries based on state-of-the-art anodes. The patent pending technology has the potential to become the next generation Li-ion battery anode. The international market for Li-ion batteries is expected to grow from $16 billion in 2014 to $78 billion in 2025. The anode market has a share of 5-15% of the total, approximately $7.8 billion in 2025.