Nanograf Technologies, the Chicago-based developer and manufacturer of silicon-based anodes and other battery components, will open a new facility for research and development of new battery materials.
It is a 67,850-square-foot building in Chicago and will house manufacturing space, laboratories, inventory and offices.
Nanograf has found a niche in the competitive lithium-ion battery market by providing high-performance batteries for military and other demanding applications. Recently Nanograf landed a $15 million contract with the US Department of Defense. In 2022 it launched a more powerful, longer-lasting 4.3Ah lithium-ion battery. The cells are lighter, and provide longer running time.
Soldiers carry upwards of 10kg of lithium-ion batteries to power communication devices, goggles, helmets and more.
At the new centre, Nanograf will accelerate its efforts to equip US soldiers with a regular supply of batteries. The silicon anode material is designed to last 30% longer and the batteries are cross-compatible with more devices, the company said. Nanograf will also use the space to work toward commercialisation.
The company’s proprietary manufacturing is differentiated from competitors relying on expensive and complex vapor deposition-based systems. Instead, Nanograf utilises a wet chemistry process that it said is highly scalable and proven in a multi ton-scale pilot manufacturing line.
The anode materials drop in to existing electrode mixing and coating equipment, and they have been validated in large-scale battery manufacturing facilities worldwide, it said.
