Silicon Valley Hira Nano Technologies Inc. announced that it has raised $70 million to expand its new silicon-lithium battery technology from prototype to commercial scale. The company claims that its technology can increase the capacity of lithium-ion batteries by 40%.
Lithium-ion batteries are the main force in modern life, providing power for people's smart phones and electric cars. But the power of smart phones is generally exhausted after less than a full day; electric cars bring people 'mileage anxiety'. Even if it is fully charged, people can't travel as safely as a gasoline-powered car.
By optimizing existing materials, older lithium-ion batteries have been able to achieve performance improvements of around 5% per year. The most straightforward way to increase battery capacity is to increase the amount of lithium ions stored in either electrode. So far, most of the battery life has improved. It is achieved by some combination of nickel, manganese and cobalt in the cathode. When these metals are combined, their crystal structure can store lithium ions more efficiently, and it is easier to move ions through the cathode to the anode than other materials. The anode is basically made of the same material - graphite.
Many companies are currently experimenting with silicon to make higher capacity anodes. In theory, they can store up to 25 times more lithium ions than similarly shaped graphite anodes, but both fail because the silicon anode ruptures under the pressure of many lithium ions. Sheila tried to solve this problem by filling the silicon atoms in a relatively empty nanoparticle matrix. When the silicon anode absorbs lithium ions, the ions fill the voids instead of pushing the silicon atoms apart, thus ensuring that the structure does not break.
Sheila CEO Jean Bedichovsky said that after seven years of development, its silicon anode lithium battery technology has been proven in small electronic devices such as wireless headsets, smart watches and smart phones. Including Samsung and Siemens. The latest injections from investors will help Sheila build a facility in Silicon Valley with an annual capacity of 20 megawatts of battery capacity, enough to power 2 million smartphones or 10 million smart watches.
If successful, Sheila will switch to a large battery that powers electric vehicles. Earlier this year, the company had established a partnership with BMW, and BMW said it would be the first car manufacturer to use lithium-lithium batteries. .
