Researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have found a way to make lithium-ion batteries cheaper, safer, and more efficient by improving how the batteries are made.
Their work could help bring a new method of battery manufacturing—known as dry processing—closer to widespread use.
Lithium-ion batteries power everything from smartphones to electric cars. Traditionally, making these batteries involves a “wet” process that uses harmful organic solvents.
These solvents are costly, take up a lot of space, require special equipment to handle safely, and generate chemical waste.
The entire process also uses more energy and money, which raises the overall cost of battery production.
Dry processing is a cleaner, cheaper alternative. It skips the use of liquid solvents and makes battery parts—called electrode films—using dry powders. But there’s been a problem: these dry films tend to tear easily and are difficult to handle during production.
To solve this issue, the ORNL team added a tiny amount of long carbon fibers to the mix. These fibers make up only about 1% of the film’s weight but made a big difference.
The films became stronger and more flexible, meaning they didn’t rip as easily during manufacturing.
Just as importantly, these carbon fibers helped the batteries perform better by speeding up the flow of electricity within the cell. That means faster charging and discharging, which is a big deal for devices and electric vehicles.
Although researchers have tested nanoscale carbon materials before, ORNL is the first to use long carbon fibers in this way.
According to lead researcher Jaswinder Sharma, the cost of adding these fibers is more than offset by the savings from not using expensive solvents.
“This could be a game-changer,” Sharma said. “By making batteries cheaper to produce and improving their performance, dry processing with carbon fibers could help U.S. manufacturers stay competitive in the global battery market.”
The team’s findings were published in the Journal of Power Sources and represent a promising step toward making cleaner, faster, and more cost-effective batteries a reality for everyday use.
