Germany may be worried that it does not have the lithium-ion cell making business it thinks it so desperately needs but when it comes to lithium-ion tool making, its machine makers may yet give the Asians a run for their money.
Marco Stehr of Manz AG, showed the latest ideas in lithium electrode slitting in Stuttgart this week— not using blades but laser technology at the World of Energy Solutions exhibition.
Not only does laser cutting eliminate tool wear, saving as much as 25% of production costs but it gives a superior finish to the electrode foil edge, leading to less scrappage.
Manz has another trick up its sleeve with lasers— an ablation technique which helps eliminate wrinkles resultant from the calendaring process- simply by burning raised elements of the electrode surface away.
More information: www.manz.com/products-services/lithium-ion-batteries
