The UK Battery Industrialisation Centre (UKBIC) has issued a new white paper outlining its latest work to address one of the most persistent issues in lithium‑ion battery production: air entrainment within electrode slurries during wet slurry casting.
Air introduced during slurry mixing and transfer can lead to coating defects, undermining battery performance, consistency, and safety. As the UK’s national manufacturing development facility, UKBIC has undertaken a detailed programme of research and engineering activity to understand and minimise air entrainment throughout the production process.
The white paper sets out the methodologies, modelling approaches, and equipment enhancements developed by UKBIC’s technical teams. Their work spans formulation adjustments, process optimisation, and equipment redesign, demonstrating that effective defect prevention requires collaboration across multiple engineering disciplines.
The research combines physics‑based modelling with experimental validation to examine degassing mechanisms and bubble behaviour. This includes modelling degassing performance across different material properties, improving slurry delivery systems to reduce air ingress, and refining coating parameters to maintain bead stability during slot‑die coating.
Key insights include the importance of understanding degassing behaviour, the influence of formulation and mixing strategies, and the significant role of equipment design in reducing air ingress. The paper also highlights opportunities in inline deaeration and improved mixing protocols.
Dr Helen Walker said: “The findings demonstrate UKBIC’s commitment to strengthening the UK’s battery manufacturing competitiveness through process insight, practical engineering solutions, and collaborative R&D. The centre’s work provides manufacturers with clearer tools, models, and best practices to reduce defects, improve yields, and produce higher performance electrodes at scale.”
The publication, Optimising Electrode Quality: Controlling Air in Battery Slurries for Superior Coating Performance, is available to download alongside a webinar presented by Dr Helen Walker.
Image: Dr Helen Walker. Credit: UKBIC
