Battery Optimization Empowered by Strategic Metrology and Characterization

Published

July 12, 2022

By Sophie Chichkov

Director, Partnerships

Sophie is a seasoned project manager, product manager and technical marketing leader working on developing the company’s offering and brand, and getting the message out. She was trained as an engineer and started her career in strategy consulting for world leading Aeronautics, Automotive, Pharma and Energy companies. She then moved on to innovation and product management and has lead the development projects and product launch strategy for materials ranging from polymers, to ceramics, magnetic materials and metals. Among other companies, Sophie has worked for Intermolecular where she brought her combination of wide materials knowledge and business acumen.

Sophie is an Ingénieure Polytechnicienne. She holds a MSc from Ecole Polytechnique and a MSc from Ecole des Mines ParisTech where she focused on Materials Science.

Efforts to optimize battery cells have catalyzed exponential growth in the industry: research, development, and manufacture of batteries in the U.S. now represent a multi-billion dollar enterprise. Some estimates project this valuation will swell to upwards of $400 billion by 2030 [1], driven by the demands of new electronic technologies, by climate sustainability initiatives, and by federal imperatives for global economic competitiveness and national security [2].

With tremendous market share on the line, companies are racing to meet the fast-pace of innovation in energy storage systems. Each week unveils new research that raises the bar for battery performance. Each week there are fresh demands for longer-lasting, higher-capacity, more-powerful battery cells.

How can scientists and engineers optimize their cells to meet these demands?

To answer that question, Covalent’s expert team of enterprise metrology consultants prepared a quick overview of 4 Targets for Optimization in Battery Cells.

This eBrief summarizes four of the most common battery properties you can target to improve cell performance, as well as some practical analytical methods that are used to evaluate and enhance each component. Whether you are an enthusiast or an expert, this overview can help you think through battery analysis in a new way.

Rapid developments from energy storage research mean the technological landscape around battery cells is constantly evolving. Scientists and engineers working in this sector must juggle a constant influx of new materials, processes, and applications for their battery cells – not to mention developments in the complementary realm of materials and device analysis. In the eBrief, Covalent experts fuse these two considerations by explaining why and how select analytical approaches are applied to each optimization target.

Read the eBrief to learn more about characterization methods that are driving breakthroughs in the battery industry today. You may find a new metrology strategy that could unlock future discoveries.

Effective metrology and characterization can accelerate R&D, fast-tracking both optimization and troubleshooting work with actionable data and insight into battery cells.

Unfortunately, it is often cost-prohibitive to install and maintain a comprehensive suite of analytical instrumentation. Even when robust metrology tools are available on-site, teams may lack the time or expertise to efficiently extract the most important data and insight for their projects. As a result, there are often holes in companies’ metrology and characterization strategies.

Covalent can help fill in those blanks.

Our world-class metrologists supply the necessary data and insight for every stage of the product development cycle. They work alongside battery experts to analyze key performative targets in the cell: everything from the crystallographic properties of particles in their raw materials to full battery pack tear-down for defect analysis.

Learn More

4 Targets for Optimization in a Battery Cell

References

[1] Stevens, P. The battery decade: How energy storage could revolutionize industries in the next 10 years. CNBC, December 30, 2019.
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/12/30/battery-developments-in-the-last-decade-created-a-seismic-shift-that-will-play-out-in-the-next-10-years.html

[2] Tsafos, N. The United States’ Industrial Strategy for the Battery Supply Chain. Center for Strategic and International Studies, December 14, 2021.
https://www.csis.org/analysis/united-states-industrial-strategy-battery-supply-chain

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