Leading energy storage researchers from the UK Faraday Institution and the US Department of Energy and its National Laboratories met in July to share research findings and identify areas for collaboration at a workshop held at the Royal Institution. The focus of this workshop, the first in a planned series to be hosted alternately in the US and the UK, was on pathways to accelerate R&D for 1) alternative recycling routes for lithium-ion batteries and 2) high-capacity cathode materials with enhanced properties, whilst reducing reliance on critical minerals.
The 40 leading US- and UK- researchers that gathered at a recently held workshop at the Royal Institution that explored ways for US and UK researchers to work more closely together to reduce reliance on critical minerals in cathode materials and to ensure recyclability of batteries. The event follows on from a virtual US UK battery summit held in February 2022, which attracted 800+ registrants. Photo by Adam Gasson / Faraday Institution.
Delegates attending the workshop also witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) by Professor Pam Thomas, CEO of the Faraday Institution, and Dr Peter F Green, Deputy Laboratory Director for Science and Technology and Chief Research Officer of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). The MOU sets out to establish a cooperative relationship in support of joint US UK research to develop and improve high-capacity batteries as well as new methods for battery materials recycling for their future usage in electric vehicles for a more sustainable world. The MOU builds upon the 2021 Atlantic Charter and Joint Statement, whereby the US President and UK Prime Minister committed to strengthen S&T collaboration, including on batteries.
Peter F Green, NREL, and Pam Thomas, Faraday Institution. Photo by Adam Gasson / Faraday Institution.
UK Business Minister Lord Callanan said: “The signing of this memorandum signals the UK’s continued commitment to international research collaboration in areas of strategic importance, such as energy storage. It is vital the UK continues to make efficient use of critical minerals through partnerships like this one and embed their re-use, recycling and recovery in the supply chain, as laid out in our new Critical Minerals Strategy.”
Professor Pam Thomas opened the workshop and, with Dr Peter Faguy, set the scene for UK and US battery research in the context of increasing demand for critical minerals and its impact on supply chains for future battery manufacture, providing a common framework for discussion. Through a series of presentations, the workshop provided a forum for delegates to share current research challenges and promising results, whilst highlighting the highest-impact areas on which to focus joint efforts. Breakout sessions, facilitated by Venkat Srinivasan (Argonne National Laboratory), Matt Keyser (NREL), and James Gaade and Ian Ellerington (Faraday Institution), focused the discussion to prioritize questions in recycling and cathode materials research which might be taken up through collaboration.
Left to right: Sofia Diaz-Moreno, Diamond Light Source; Jagjit Nanda, ORNL and Paul Shearing, UCL; Jie Xiao, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and Tony Harper, Faraday Battery Challenge
During the week, US delegates also visited the impressive battery research laboratories and facilities at UCL, Imperial College London, and the United Kingdom’s Battery Industrialisation Centre – hearing talks on cutting-edge R&D and manufacturing
Agenda
US UK Workshop Series in Electrochemical Energy Storage Research
Workshop 1: Cathode Materials and Recycling
27 – 28 July 2022
Day One
Welcome, Pam Thomas CEO, The Faraday Institution
Introduction, Peter Faguy, on behalf of David Howell, Vehicle Technologies Programme US Department of Energy
Cathode Materials
- Earth-abundant DRX Cathode Materials for Li-ion, Gerd Ceder, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
- CATMAT: Project Overview and Highlights on Li-Rich Cathodes, Ben Morgan, University of Bath
- S. DOE-VTO Focus on Transition-Metal Oxide Cathodes for Transportation Applications, Jason Croy, Argonne National Laboratory
- CATMAT: Optimisation and Scale-up of Ni-rich NMC Materials, Emma Kendrick, University of Birmingham
- Single Crystal Ni-Rich Cathode Materials: Synthesis, Scaleup and Validation, Jie Xiao, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
- FutureCat Ni-Rich Cathodes: Synthesis, Scaleup and Characterization, Louis Piper, WMG University of Warwick
- Process R&D for Manufacturing Advanced Cathode Materials, Kris Pupek, Argonne National Laboratory
- CATMAT: Discovery and Investigation of New Cathode Materials, Peter Slater University of Birmingham
- Alternate Synthesis Routes and Precursors for Cation Disorder Rock Salt Cathode, Jagjit Nanda, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
- Challenges and Opportunities for Measuring Mechanical Strength Properties of Cathode Particles, Beverley Inkson, University of Sheffield
- Advanced Spectroscopy Studies of Battery Materials, Mahalingam Balasubramanian, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
- Supporting Battery Research at Diamond Light Source, Sofia Diaz-Moreno, Diamond Light Source
- Characterization of Charge and Mass Transfer Processes at Cathode/Electrolyte Interfaces, Robert Kostecki, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
- Impacts of Charging Rate on Lithium-ion Battery Cathode, Tanvir Tanim, Idaho National Laboratory
Recycling
- The ReLiB Pipeline for EV Battery Recycling Technologies, Paul Anderson, University of Birmingham
- ReCell: Working to Improve Battery Recycling, Jeffrey Spangenberger, Argonne National Laboratory
- Selective Leaching Approaches to Mixed Cathode Materials, Peter Slater, University of Birmingham
- Direct Recycling Technique Optimization for High-quality Material Outputs, Kae Fink, National Renewable Energy Laboratory
- Materials Reclamation for Remanufacturing of Lithium- ion Batteries, Emma Kendrick, University of Birmingham
- Recovery of Cathodes and Nodes from Scraps and Spent Lithium-ion Cells, Ilias Belharouak, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
- Designing Lithium-ion Batteries for Recycle, Andy Abbott, University of Leicester
- Developing New Methods to Recover Li-ion Battery Components, Albert Lipson, Argonne National Laboratory
Day Two
- Break Out Session: Cathode Materials
- Break Out Session: Recycling
The workshop was organised by Tony Burrell, Chief Technologist for Energy Storage at NREL, and Matt Howard, Chief Strategy Officer for the Faraday Institution.
About the FI:
The Faraday Institution is the UK’s independent institute for electrochemical energy storage research, skills development, market analysis, and early-stage commercialisation. Bringing together expertise from universities and industry, the Faraday Institution endeavours to make the UK the go-to place for the research and development of new electrical storage technologies for both the automotive and wider relevant sectors. It is a key delivery partner for the Faraday Battery Challenge at UK Research & Innovation.
About the U.S. Department of Energy’s Applied Energy Storage Programmes:
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) directs research designed to reduce the cost of batteries. It is involved in all aspects of battery development from addressing fundamental issues of materials and electrochemical interactions at interfaces. This research includes materials discovery, advanced cholerization, theory and modelling, advanced characterization, and diagnostic tools. The Vehicles Technologies Office (VTO) also has an emphasis on optimizing next generation, high-energy lithium ion electrochemistries, such as high energy cathode and anode, full cell systems, and the complex chemical interactions in these cells.
Attendees
39 delegates participated in the two-day workshop, representing 18 organisations from the US and UK.
Argonne National Laboratory
Dr Venkat Srinivasan
Dr Jason R Croy
Dr Krzysztof (Kris) Z. Pupek
Mr Jeff Spangenberger
Dr Albert L Lipson
Cambridge University
Professor Dame Clare P. Grey
Diamond Light Source
Dr Sofia Diaz-Moreno
The Faraday Institution
Professor Pam Thomas
Mr James Gaade
Mr Ian Ellerington
Dr Sylwia Waluś
Mr Matt Howard
Idaho National Laboratory
Dr Tanvir R. Tanim
Innovate UK and the Faraday Battery Challenge
Mr Tony Harper
Jaguar Land Rover
Dr Valentina Gentili
Lancaster University
Dr Nuria Tapia Ruiz
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Dr Gerd Ceder
Dr Robert Kostescki
National Renewable Energy Laboratory
Dr Peter F. Green
Dr Bill Tumas
Dr Tony Burrell
Mr Matthew Keyser
Ms Kae Fink
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Dr Ilias Belharouak
Dr Mahalingam Balasubramanian
Dr Jagjit Nanda
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Dr Jud Virden
Dr Jie Xiao
University College London
Professor Paul Shearing
University of Bath
Dr Benjamin Morgan
University of Birmingham
Professor Paul Anderson
Professor Emma Kendrick
Professor Peter R Slater
University of Leicester
Professor Andrew Abbott
University of Warwick
Professor Louis Piper
The University of Sheffield
Dr Denis Cumming
Professor Beverley J Inkson
University of St Andrews
Professor John Irvine
The US Department of Energy
Peter Faguy
Comments are closed.