High Energy Batteries for Electric Flights

This proposal aims to develop a better-performing battery pack for an EV vehicle that is part of a fleet of electric vehicles maintained by the 412 MXG group at Edwards AFB, CA. We plan to build this battery using our high-capacity proprietary and patented anode and cathode materials technology to give us cell-level specific energy of up to 500 Wh/Kg.  To accomplish this, we plan to use our carbon technology to synthesize a Carbon/Silicon composite anode material with >800 mAh/g capacity and a Carbon/Sulfur cathode material with a capacity of >750 mAh/gm. During Phase I, we confirmed the suitability of using our process (polymerization of furfuryl alcohol– in the presence of Si particles and other additives) to synthesize Carbon/Silicon composite materials that were suitable for high-capacity LIB anode applications.  Our Carbon technology (polymerization of furfuryl alcohol) represents a simple, robust and low carbon-footprint method of replacing graphite in traditional LIB cells - at an attractive price-point.  Specifically, we demonstrated an initial capacity of >550 mAh/g with - with a Carbon/Silicon composite - as tested by our university sub-contractor (Pennsylvania State University) in ½ cell configurations. Our planned Phase II development work will use a smaller Silicon particle size and an increased ratio of Silicon-to-Carbon to achieve our goal of >800 mAh/gm.  Several promising Si nanoparticles will be evaluated, along with several additives (to improve electrical performance and pre-lithiation of the anode powders).  This proprietary anode material will be combined with commercial off-the-self cathode materials and electrolytes to construct our first next-generation LIB product offering. We also plan development work on a carbon-sulfur cathode material using the same approach (polymerization of furfuryl alcohol in the presence of S-based salts and other additives).  This is anticipated to yield cathode materials with >750 mAh/g capacity.  To construct our LIB cells, along with our proprietary electrode materials, we plan to use other commercial off-the-shelf components required to complete the cells. Farad Power's electrode materials synthesis process utilizes the polymerization of a furfuryl alcohol carbon precursor in the presence of additives. Furfuryl alcohol is a liquid organic compound derived from agricultural waste (namely sugarcane bagasse and corn cob). It is readily available, inexpensive, and derived from a renewable source. We have studied this system in great detail and have synthesized hundreds of batches of carbon and carbon composites using this method in our laboratories. We have already been granted ten patents on the technology and have filed several more.