UKRI invests £10 million to support R&D projects
Innovate UK on behalf of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) has announced a further investment of £10 million from the Faraday Battery Challenge to support collaborative R&D projects co-funded by industry and managed by UKRI.
At least two of the 17 projects will use UKBIC, the pioneering battery manufacturing development facility UKBIC recently opened by the Prime Minister, to help deliver the projects.
UKBIC has been developed to support UK industry with development of battery technologies for future electrification. The facility is a key part of the Government’s Faraday Battery Challenge, created to fast track the commercialisation of cost-effective, high-performance, durable, safe, low-weight and recyclable batteries.
The Power-Up project will establish the feasibility of manufacturing AMTE Power’s Ultra High Power cells in the UK, at volume manufacturing scale. The aim is to have an automotive format cell ready for production at UKBIC by the end of the 12-month project. AMTE will engage with potential UK customers for these cells, providing them early mover advantage
SABRE (Silicon Anode Battery for Rapid Electrification), led by Nexeon, is aiming to deliver an advanced lithium-ion cell design incorporating a novel silicon anode that has the potential to increase the range of electric vehicles. Nexeon’s silicon material with high lithium capacity and low volume change on cycling is being used as a basis.
Britishvolt will apply innovative computer-aided cell design and simulation to accelerate the integration of silicon into the anode design. Analysis will be carried out using X-ray computed tomography developed at UCL’s Electrochemical Innovation Lab and refined as part of the Faraday Institution’s project on battery degradation. The project will utilise the new cell assembly capabilities at UKBIC for the fabrication of cells to test and validate the new cell design.
Tony Harper Challenge Director for Faraday Battery Challenge at UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) said: “Since 2017 the Faraday Battery Challenge has been supporting the UK’s battery companies to produce batteries that are more cost effective, more efficient, charge faster and can easily be recycled.
“This new round of funding enables us to support companies across the battery supply chain and build on the UK’s world class research and innovation. Two projects, Power-UP and SABRE, combine industry partners with input from the UK Battery Industrialisation Centre and the Faraday Institution to deliver a product that has the potential of being a best-in-class cell with unique selling points.”
To read the full UKRI announcement, click here.
