Develop high-energy, low-cost, and durable cathodes for sodium-ion batteries

The state-of-the-art cathode materials for automobile lithium-ion batteries use expensive elements such as lithium, cobalt and nickel, which are scarce materials in the U.S. In addition, the U.S. falls significantly behind Asian countries in lithium-ion batteries manufacturing: the U.S. shared ~8% of the global lithium-ion batteries manufacturing capacity in 2020, which is far behind the need for the electrification of the American automobile industry. Fermi Energy, Inc. proposes to develop fundamentally disruptive cathode technology to enable the use of low-cost, lithium, cobalt and nickel-free oxide cathodes in high-energy sodium-ion batteries. The proposed technology can also achieve long battery life for electric vehicles. Moreover, the proposed cathode materials can utilize mainstream manufacturing facilities and processes, minimizing barriers to mass production in the US. During Phase I, Fermi Energy, Inc. will complete the following tasks: (a) Design, manufacturing, and characterization of low cost cathodes that can enable high energy density and long cycle life. (b) Full-cell integration with the hard carbon anode and electrochemical measurements under various practically relevant testing conditions following the protocols published by the Department of Energy and the U.S. Advanced Battery Consortium. The successful development of the new cathode technology is expected to result in a $6,000 cost reduction per automobile battery pack (75 kWh), which will greatly facilitate the widespread adoption of electric vehicles in the U.S.