Northern Graphite (TSXV: NGC) and Rain Carbon are teaming up to develop and commercialize an advanced battery anode material (BAM) used in lithium-ion batteries. The goal is to extend cycle life, speed up charging and reduce electrode swelling.
Their innovation will address the stability gap between natural and synthetic graphite, and boost usage of natural graphite in electric vehicles, Northern Graphite said.
The joint development agreement follows the launch of Northern’s Battery Material Group (BMG) in August. This included the acquisition of a carbon and battery laboratory in Germany. The lab can both produce BAM from the company’s Lac des Iles mine in Quebec and is capable of building lithium-ion batteries with longer life cycle, driving range, and charging speed.
Rain’s Innovation Centre in Hamilton, Ontario, is a 2,790-m2 development facility that includes demonstrations plants for pilot-scale processing of carbon and carbon precursor materials along with labs dedicated to carbon material analysis with powder and electrochemical testing equipment.
Tailoring carbon coating to spherical natural graphite and developing efficient and sustainable coating technologies are critical steps in the production of BAM.
The process involves the application of a protective carbon layer at the surface of the graphite anode active material to form a more stable solid electrolyte interface, which enhances and calibrates what is known as the coulombic efficiency of the first and subsequent cycles, while tuning the performance of Li-ion insertion into and out of the active material.
