The facility is reported to be one of the largest separator coating facilities for lithium-metal batteries in North America.
ALAMEDA, Calif.—Sepion Technologies, a battery product company focused on furthering the advancement of lithium-metal batteries (LMBs) for electric vehicles (EVs) and e-mobility applications, recently opened what it described as “one of North America’s largest separator coating facilities for LMBs.” The 25,000-square-foot building increases Sepion’s separator coating capacity by 1,000-fold and its polymer synthesis scale by 100-fold, the company said in a release.
The new facility is said to enable production of up to 10 Ah pouch cells and is powered 100 percent by renewable energy. These enhancements are expected to expedite the transition of Sepion’s LMB separator coatings from prototype to pilot-scale production in collaboration with leading automotive OEMs, according to the release.
“Today marks a major milestone in our journey to transform the EV landscape and sustainably power humankind,” said Peter Frischmann, CEO and co-founder of Sepion Technologies, in the release. “We are proud to pioneer advancements that not only benefit the e-mobility industry but also contribute positively to our planet’s well-being.”
Sepion’s innovative separators are designed using a closed loop, data-driven materials development program combining computational chemistry, machine learning, and experimental electrochemistry. They are said to accelerate the safe replacement of graphite anodes with lithium-metal and boost e-mobility range by 40 percent or more while delivering a considerable improvement in fast-charge performance.
Sepion said it focuses on scaling its products using established roll-to-roll manufacturing processes, ensuring gigafactory compatibility with minimal switching costs. The company’s products will empower battery cell manufacturers to maximize the potential of their gigafactories, offering a 40 percent increase in energy output and faster capital payback, Sepion said in the release.
“The opening of our lithium-metal separator coating facility represents a major leap forward in our production capacity and reaffirms our commitment to environmental sustainability,” said Zahid Shafi, vice president of operations at Sepion, in the release.
Sepion said it is actively developing separator products and sampling with Fortune 100 automotive companies and global battery suppliers.