California Firm Looking to Graphene for Safer Lithium-Ion Batteries

A layer of graphene could make next-generation lithium-ion batteries safer to use, last longer and operate in a wider temperature range, says Nanotech Energy, one of several companies working on graphene batteries as a safer alternative to current lithium-ion power cells. Los Angeles-based Nanotech is targeting its graphene batteries to a swath of devices, from wearables to electric vehicles, CEO Jack Kavanaugh told us Wednesday. Battery safety has been a top issue for portable device makers since Samsung’s high-profile debacle with lithium-ion batteries in the doomed Galaxy Note 7 (see 1701230048), which Samsung recalled twice and finally discontinued due to overheating and fire risk. With standard lithium-ion batteries, pressure from parts can cause damage to the wires around the batteries, leading to short-circuiting. When lithium-ion batteries get shorted, the energy from the battery gets released suddenly, causing the temperature to rise hundreds of degrees within milliseconds -- resulting in the battery catching fire, says the Nanotech website. The FAA classifies lithium-ion batteries as “dangerous goods” and requires battery chargers and power banks to be transported in carry-on luggage vs. aircraft cargo holds to reduce risk of fire. Kavanaugh said graphene can withstand the volume changes of battery electrodes during charge and discharge, reducing the chances of an internal short circuit. He described a “nail test,” where testers hammer a nail into a conventional car battery causing it to short, explode and catch fire. “With ours, neither happens,” he said. “Graphene is one of the strongest known materials, is completely flexible, and an excellent conductor of electricity -- thus preventing the battery from overheating,” said Nanotech co-founder Richard Kaner, a UCLA professor of chemistry and materials science and engineering. Nanotech’s first product was a super capacitor using graphene, which morphed into “super batteries,” a “much bigger market,” Kavanaugh said. He wouldn’t disclose potential customers or use cases for its first batteries, which could reach the market by 2022. The company is planning for a factory dedicated to battery and electrode production. Its first battery, in prototype, could be made into “any shape, either cylindrical or flat,” he said, and is being tested for automotive, utilities, CE devices and consumer products, including lawnmowers and electric bikes.